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AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER: 

OB, 
THE NATIVITY, EXPERIENCE, TRAVELS, AND MINISTERIAL LABORS 



REV. SAMUEL PICKABD, 



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CCLNTAIXING 



STIRRING INCIDENTS AND PRACTICAL THOUGHTS; WITH SERMONS BY 
THE AUTHOR, AND SOME ACCOUNT OF THE LABORS OF 



ELDER JACOB KNAPP. 



The love of Christ doth me constrain, 
To seek the waiuVring souls of men." 



EDITED BY O. T. CONGER. 



[illustrated.] 



CHICAGO: 
CHURCH & GOODMAN, Publishers, 

51 LA SALLE STREET. 
186(3. 






■Pert* 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by 

CHURCH & GOODMAN, 

la the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the ynited States, for the Northern 

District of Illinois. 



i\i^ c 



Cb drch, Goodman & Donnelley, Stereotyped by 

Printers, , A. Zkesk, 

51 and 53 La Salle Street, . • . ' 84 Dearborn street, 

Chicago. * *<> \ Chicago. 



/ 






DEDICATION* 



TO THE MANY NEW CONVERTS 
with whom I have prayed, wept and rejoiced at, the mercy seat ; 
and to the many brethren, sisters, and warm friends who have 
sat under my ministry, and from whom I have received much 
help and kindness, is this volume respectfully inscribed by their 
Grateful Friend and Brother, 

S. PICKARD. 



PREFACE 



"0 that mine, enemy "would write a book !" This, in former 
times, passed for as sore an evil as a good man could think of wishing 
to his worst enemy : but as to my enemies — and I hope that, aside 
from " the rulers of the darkness of this world, 1 ' they are very few — 
l do not know that they have wished me so great an evil ; yet, strange 
to say, my best friends have. Book-making is not my forte; but I 
have been urged to attempt it, and here is the result. 

I began to preach in Iowa when it was a Territory, and when there 
were, perhaps, not to exceed a hundred Baptists within its entire 
bounds, and have made it my principal field of labor ever since. 
During all this time my labors have consisted chiefly in traveling from 
place to place, and holding protracted meetings. 

My life has been a stirring one ; and it is supposed, and probably 
is true, that I have preached more sermons in Iowa than any other 
minister now in it. I have aided in the organization of many churches, 
and held meetings in a great many places ; and it is thought by those 
who have wished me to produce this book, that the many hundreds 
of converts who have been brought out in those meetings, and also 
multitudes of brethren, sisters, and friends, who have in different 
places sat under my ministry, would gladly receive the volume from 
my hands, and be much profited by it. That I have been persuaded 
to this must be my only apology. 

In justice to myself I should say, that the book has been hastily 
prepared within the last few months, under the pressure of ministe- 
rial labors, so that very little time could be devoted to giving it literary 



VI. PREFACE. 

excellence. Even under these circumstances it has been taken alto- 
gether from memory ; for I have never kept a journal — a fact which 
I very much regret. Many incidents, therefore, which would have 
been interesting and useful I have doubtless forgotten. 

In what I have recorded I have endeavored to correct abuses, and 
to impress proper sentiments on the mind of the reader, by an appli- 
cation of the facts set forth. If I succeed in this, my greatest wish 
in regard to the book will be accomplished. 

SAMUEL PICKARD. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE. 

Parentage — Childhood — Quaker habits 13 

CHAPTER II. 
Quaker doctrines * 22 

CHAPTER III. 
Move to Iowa — Wolf story — Prairie-breaking — Sickness — Pros- 
pects of marriage 27 

CHAPTER TV. 
Teaches school — Takes the ague — Causes of ague, and its 
effects — An ague story — Teaches school among the Mormons — 
Appearance of the school-house — Character of the school — 
" Trying the master's pluck " — Conquering a peace 33 

CHAPTER V. 
Rise of Mormons — Their strange doctrines — Working miracles — 
Joke on a Mormon Elder — Baptizing for the dead — Mormon 
prayer-meeting — Fate of the "Gentiles" — Mormon dialogue — 
The author is expected to join — The Danites — Corruption of 
the " Saints 1 " — Spiritual- wife system — Preaching of one of the 
apostles — Testimony of sixteen women — Arrest of the prophet 
— Mormons driven out 40 

CHAPTER VI. 
Awakening and conversion 49 



Vlll. CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

CHAPTER VII. 
Choosing a church 61 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Courtship and marriage 1 — Learning the drill in God's army 16 

CHAPTER IX. 
Call to the ministry 84 

CHAPTER X. 

Commences traveling — Elder More — Trials of early settlers — 
Meeting at the " Devil's Ridge " — Dreadful death of a sinner — 
Using a skeleton 91 

CHAPTER XI. 

Remarkable meeting in Lee county — Dream — A riot — Two men 
dragging their wives from the anxious seat — Life threatened — 
Midianites — The congregation prays for safety — The author's 
escape — Rioters fall under the power of God — Dream fulfilled. 108 

CHAPTER XII. 

Early preachers — A sudden loss of hair — Praying a man out of 
meeting — Incident of Crazy Joe 116 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Ministers' wives — Meeting at R * * * * — A pastor converted— 
Driven from the meeting-house — The poor woman's mite — Re- 
flections — Thoughts on revivals 128 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Conversation with a backslidden deacon — Returns home — 
Thoughts on the Spirit — Goes back to Lyttleton — Wickedness 
of the place — Holds a meeting — Great revival — Incidents of 
the power of God — Dancing-master and his class converted — 
Reflections 141 

CHAPTER XV. 
Essay on revivals 151 



CONTENTS. IX. 



CHAPTER XVI. 



Goes to Rushville — Loans a meeting-house — Religious visits — 
Fiddler converted — Impudence of a sinner — A tumult and the 
result — Spread of the revival — How it closed — Disappointment 
of two ministers — Perilous voyage amid the ice — Providential 
'escape — Labors in a meeting — Thoughts on Divine Provi- 
dence — Returns homo — Success of the tour 164 

CHAPTER XVII. 

G-oes to Missouri — Meeting in the town of W * * * * — Incident 
at the baptism of a negro — The negro's poetry — Religious 
interest among the slaves — A negro sits down on a hot stove — 
The result — Making an agreement with Hell — "Warnings — A 
stingy collection — Apologies — Returns home 114 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

Meeting at A * * * * — Dull prospects — Revival — Scene at a 
baptism— A novel wedding — Who should have the marriage 
fees — Thoughts on baptism — A diagram — Church government. 184 

CHAPTER XIX. 

Hard times — Meeting in a cabin — The old Baptist and his dogs — 
Thoughts on building meeting-houses — Revival at S * * * * — 
A hard place — Disturbance — Holding mock communion with 
a bottle of whiskey — Impudence of a rowdy — Confusion of a 
young squire — The reason why donkeys are scarce — Threats 
of personal violence — Movements of a reverend school-teach- 
er — His school-building burned — A man threatens to shoot the 
author for baptizing his wife — Testimony respecting immer- 
sion — Sad affliction — Farming 1 94 

CHAPTER XX. 

Visit at R * * * * and L * * * * —Joys— Meeting at M * * * *— 
Experience with the dancers — Visiting — Sexton work — Con- 
fessions of the brethren— Immense feeling — A time of power — 
The collection — Antinomianism — Preaching in a bar-room — 
Returns home — Takes the small-pox — Extreme suffering — 
Thoughts on the nature of Job's affliction — Doctors' bills. . . . 208 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XXI. 



Learning the carpentering trade — Laboring as an Evangelist — 
The stool-pigeon — Return to the bench — A sharper, alias 
school-teacher — A costly joke on two brethren — Labors again 
as an Evangelist — Meeting with a stupid church — Yfhom the 
devil don't want — Revival on Cottonwood Creek — Baptism of 
an invalid — Remarkable results — Reflections 220 

CHAPTER XXII. 

Becomes a merchant — Reported as an Abolitionist — Fails in 
business — Removes the store to Iowa — Prosperity — Boating — 
Railroad enterprise — Financial ruin — The deacon's wish — Ad- 
vice to ministers — Removes to Charleston — Meeting at New 
Boston — Perplexity with two mockers — What became of 
them — Methodist lady baptized by mistake — Effects of reading 
the Bible by two ladies — Interesting conversion of Mr. R * * * — 
A revival meeting in Keokuk— Return home 234 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Return to Keokuk — A church organized— Elected Pastor — Inter- 
esting prayer-meetings — "Brimstone Corner" — Great pros- 
perity — Baptist council — Persecution — Struggles — Scraps of 
history concerning Baptists — Defence of three ministers by 
Patrick Henry, and his eloquent speech — References — A news- 
paper article 249 

CHAPTER XXTV. 

Baptism of a nun, and trouble with the Catholics — Immense 
crowd at the water — Thoughts on nunneries — Conversion of 
an infidel — How it happened — His experience — An infidel club 
burning their Bibles — The converted infidel called to the min- 
istry — His death — The sharpers of the Lower Rapids, and how 
they managed — Warnings to young men — A thought on preach- 
ing — A wedding in church — Conversion of most of the wed- 
ding party — Baptism of a landlady, and threats of her hus- 
band — How it ended — The financial crash of 1851-8 — Hard 
times — A providential supply — Reflections 268 



CONTENTS. XI. 

PAGE. 

CHAPTER XXV. 
Under appointment of the Home Mission — Visiting Associa- 
tions — Finds a miserable lodging— Chicken and potatoes, etc. — 
Liberality of Western brethren 285 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

Holding grove-meetings — Nature's meeting-houses — A wise in- 
vestment of twenty-five cents — Thoughts on giving — Meeting 
at S * * * G- * * * — Bad usage — What became of the hog and 
flour — Labors in and about Fort Madison — Thoughts on church 
extension — Brief history of the Fort Madison Church — Con- 
versation on communion — Joy of an old lady on learning that 
the Baptists were all in heaven — Effects of pounding the Bap- 
tists 301 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

Enters the army — Tennessee River — Pittsburg Landing — Laid in 
the hospital at Hamburg — Prospects of death — Recovery — 
Appointed Hospital Chaplain — Description of the hospital — 
Conversion of a young man — Dreadful cries of a wounded 
man, who was dying — Praying for a wounded captain — Solemn 
warnings — Mournful incident of transporting a dead husband — 

Reflections — Return from the war 320 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

Reappointed a missionary — A revival in V * * * * — Giving up 
the meeting-house to two ministers — The result — Reflections — 
Meeting near Deacon C * * * 's — A dreadful fright — Want of 
meeting-houses in the West — Revival at D * * * * — Meeting 
at S * * * * — Happy results— Revival a t Y * * * A * * * * — 
Trials and triumphs — Labors for Burlington College — Liberality 
of the churches — The church at A * * * * — The thirty-five- 
cent collection — What a church may come to — Reflections — 

Hospitality of a little peddler 337 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

A ride with a peddler — Conversation with a rebel, and his 
arrest — success of the college enterprise — Labors again as a 
missionary — Report of one hundred and two days' labor — 
Attacked by two Universalist ministers — The result — Some 
poetry for Universalists — The great harvest — Call for laborers — 
Farewell address 354 



Xll. CONTEXTS. 

PAGE. 

SERMONS BY S. PICKARD. 

Sermon - I. 

Tho Barren Fig Tree 3G7 

Sermon II. 
On the Opening of the Books 380 

APPENDIX. 
An examination of the comparative statistical results of the 
labors of Elder Jacob Knapp, in the State of Massachusetts. 
By A. Wilbur 594 



CHAPTEE I. 

PAKENTAGE — CHILDHOOD — QUAKEE HABITS. 

I was born, October 28th, 1820, in Bartholomew 
county, Indiana. My parents were natives of Ten- 
nessee, and were old-fashioned, honest, respectable 
Quakers. My father was a farmer. 

When I was about seven years old my parents 
moved to Park county, Indiana, and settled on the 
"Wabash river. 

Quakers are much inclined to settle in commun- 
ities of their own kind, and here was a strong one. 
Their regulations were such, that in many respects 
they were, as they always are in such communities, 
a little nation by themselves ; and so completely was 
I surrounded by and under the influence of Quaker 
society, that I was a full-grown man before I had any 
definite idea of society outside of the community. 
All my neighbors and acquaintances were Quakers ; 
all the schools and religious meetings I ever attended, 
and all the social gatherings I was in until I became 
a man, were made up of Quakers. 

In those days we had in that county little induce- 
ment and less facility for travel; hence I "vegetated" 
quietly in the one neighborhood, and was trained up 
in the Quakers' peculiar habits of dress and conver- 
sation. My communications were "yea," "nay," 



14 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and "verily;" and, as might be expected, when I 
was twenty-one years of age, I was a complete 
Quaker, " dyed in the wool." 

JSTo teacher was employed in the community unless 
he was a Quaker, and none but Quaker pupils were 
allowed in the school, unless by special permission 
of the trustees. 

All our schools were conducted under the super- 
vision of the Church. 

Our common school would have been a novelty to 
a person unaccustomed to these people ; and it may 
be interesting to the reader to have a description : 

The house was about twenty-five by forty feet in 
size, and was, for a new country, built with much 
regard to health and convenience, and was a model 
of order and cleanliness. 

From forty to sixty children, plainly and cleanly 
attired, sat in order around the room, and behind the 
writing-desk sat the pedagogue. He wore an old, 
time-honored broad-brimmed hat, tight-fitting pants 
and stockings, and a smooth, buttonless, shad-bellied 
coat; had a grave countenance, a sober and wise 
look, and was regarded by me as decidedly the most 
knowing man that was to be found anywhere. 
" Spare the rod and spoil the child," was no part of 
his creed. He usually had near at hand a good 
tough hickory or birch rod, with which he often 
tanned our jackets in unruly cases, and woe to the 
little Quaker who was found guilty of misdemeanor. 
Often was I made to dance jigs and hornpipes to the 
music of the gad. However, we had a good school, 
and he made as rapid progress in teaching the young 



MY SCHOOL DAYS. 15 

ideas how to shoot, as our mischievous inclinations 
would permit. 

The teacher had a very pleasant way of managing 
the noon-spell dinner. We were commonly seated 
with military precision in a hollow square behind 
the writing-desks. Heads of classes were permitted 
the official honor of getting the dinner baskets, and 
placing them before their respective owners, who in 
turn laid out the dinner on the desk before them. 
The teacher's seat was considered the head of the 
table. The victuals being spread, at a motion of his 
hand all would become perfectly quiet for saying 
grace, which was done in silence, occupying one or 
two minutes, and which was broken by another 
signal from the teacher, when all would eat their 
dinners. In very pleasant weather he would take 
us to a shady grove, where our dinner was spread 
upon the grass, and eaten with the same order and 
decorum as before mentioned. 

Here, with my brothers, sisters and playfellows, I 
spent the gleeful days of my boyhood in many a 
youthful sport, drinking again and again from the 
cup of childish bliss, little dreaming of the stern 
realities which in after-life I was in the providence 
of God to experience. I cannot pass this bright 
period of my life without dwelling a moment upon 
its sweet memories, or feeling a tender sadness, as I 
view this weather-beaten, failing tabernacle, in the 
thought that those merry days will never more re- 
turn. Parents, I often think it should be one of your 
most willing and pleasant duties, to seek to make 
your children happy; for in many respects childhood 



16 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEEE. 

is the happy part of life. It will soon be past. The 
little feet of the children are "marching along." 
They will soon leave the joyous morning and flowery 
spring behind. Make them happy, then, while you 
may. Crush not their pleasures, give them no need- 
less sorrow, for full soon they must breast life's cold 
storms alone ! 

The place of our settlement on the Wabash was in 
a new country, and heavily timbered; by reason of 
which we had much hard work to perform in clear- 
ing the forests before we had a comfortable habita- 
tion ; but by thrift and economy, and general good 
management on the part of my father, prosperity 
attended him, and in a few years he was in quite 
easy circumstances. 

"With him I learned all about hard work, and was 
well drilled in chopping, logging, lifting, and many 
of those kinds of labor that require the free use of 
muscle. This experience developed my bodily 
strength and powers of endurance, in a degree which 
I should not otherwise have enjoyed. This has 
proved to me a great blessing, and served me in 
many emergencies in after-life ; and my unqualified 
verdict is, that all boys, whether they expect to be 
presidents, preachers, or farmers, ought to be taught 
to do manual labor. 

The dense, heavy forests of Park county, in the 
days of my boyhood, abounded in wild game, and 
hunting was a common sport with me and my fellows, 
and we often enjoyed it hugely. We went out hunt- 
ing as often as we could get permission, and some- 
times often er. My father was very strict in the 



MY SCHOOL DATS. 17 

observance of his religious duties, especially that of 
attending the regular meetings of his church twice a 
week. On such occasions we frequently watched 
the venerable sire, and as soon as he was out of 
sight, my brothers and I would take our dogs and 
guns, and slope for the woods. "We often hunted at 
night for coons. This was rich sport, and as they 
were very troublesome in robbing hen-roosts and 
cornfields, their room was thought to be better than 
their company, and as their skins would always com- 
mand a price in market, the prospect of getting 
pocket change was always an additional stimulant to 
us in hunting them. Dogs, well trained to the busi- 
ness, will find them and tree them. "When this is done, 
the next thing to be accomplished is to cut down the 
tree, or send up some one to shake them off. Many 
are the anecdotes that are told of coon-hunters. A 
laughable one is related of a clerical friend, as having 
occurred during his younger days. He was out with 
a party, one night, coon-hunting, and the dogs hav- 
ing treed an old coon, it was determined by the party 
that our friend should climb the tree and shake him 
off, so that the dogs might catch him. Accordingly 
he ascended, and stealing softly from branch to 
branch in search of the coon, he finally espied him 
snugly ensconced on one of the topmost branches, a 
somewhat interested spectator of the scene which 
was transacting below. Proceeding cautiously, he 
reached the limb below that on which was the coon. 
Raising himself up for the purpose of reaching the 
limb which he intended to shake, the one on which 
he stood was heard to crack, and began to give way. 



18 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

He was now thirty feet from the ground. Aware 
of his perilous condition, he cried out to his com- 
panions below, " I'm falling !" Seeing his danger, 
and that nothing scarcely less than a miracle could 
save him from death, they besought him to pray. 
"Pray!" said he; "I haven't time; I can't pray.'* 
" But you must pray. If you fall you will be killed.'' 
He then commenced repeating the only prayer he 
knew: "Now I lay me down to sleep;" but he 
could proceed no farther, as the cracking of the limb 
indicated its speedy severance from the trunk, and 
he cried out at the top of his voice, " Hold the dogs ! 
I'm coming !" and sure enough, down he came with 
a crash ; and the dogs, thinking him to be the coon, 
were with difficulty restrained from attacking the 
coon-hunter. Fortune, however, so favored his fall 
that he was only stunned. 

A negro obtained permission of his master to start 
out coon-hunting one night, and on seeing his mas- 
ter in the morning, who was anxious to know about 
his success, related the following: ""Well, massa, 
you know I treed the coon, and I climbs up to shake 
him off de limb. When I got by him, I begins to 
shake, and presently I hearn something drap, and 
what do you think it was, massa ?" " Why the 
coon, to be sure." "No, it wasn't, massa; it was 
dis here nigger." It appears that instead of shak- 
ing off the coon, he shook himself off. 

THE QUAKER HABITS 

Are peculiar. A community of Friends is almost 
a world within itself. It is as nearly separated from 



, MY SCHOOL DAYS. 19 

the world without, and is as nearly distinct from it, 
as any circle of mortals well can be. All dress in 
the same plainness of style, the rich as well as the 
poor. All use the same peculiar phraseology, as 
yea, nay and verily. Portions of time are designated 
by numbers instead of names ; as, for instance, 
twelve o'clock is called the first hour of the day, and 
one o'clock the second hour. Sunday is called the 
first day of the week, and Monday the second day. 
January is called the first month, and February the 
second month, etc. Their houses of worship are 
usually built neat and plain, with a partition of 
sliding doors across the audience room, so as to form 
two rooms of equal size, or have but one room, by 
sliding the doors, as may be desired. Commonly 
the doors are closed, and the sisters worship in one 
room while the brethren worship in the other, but 
on certain occasions the sliding doors are thrown 
open and all worship together. The men have the 
uncommon habit of keeping their hats on during 
divine service. They are opposed to all fashionable 
forms of politeness and rules of etiquette in speech 
and conduct, and repudiate all titles of honor, and 
refuse to take their hats off even in the presence of 
magistrates and superiors; being taught to " call no 
man master on earth." They hold devotional meetings 
twice each week, and have business meetings once 
each month. Their meetings for worship are held 
from one to two hours. They all take seats in their 
chapel, and there remain usually in perfect silence, 
as if in communion with their own thoughts. They 
believe that at such a time the Spirit must move 



20 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

upon them, to act or speak, before they can openly 
perform any religious service which will be accept- 
able to God. If one feels that the Spirit moves upon 
him to speak, he will rise and offer religious re- 
marks, but if not, after they have remained in silence 
one or two hours, some one of the leading brethren 
shakes hands with the one sitting next to him. This 
is taken as a signal for dismission, when suddenly 
there is a general shaking of hands all around the 
room, and without farther ceremony they disperse, 
with perhaps not a word or a whisper having been 
heard during the whole meeting. 

They never sing in their meetings, as they believe 
that "melody in the heart" should be made unto 
the Lord. They have no regular ministry brought 
out and sustained, as is common to most religious 
sects ; but there are those in the order who are gifted 
with speech, and who devote a portion of their time 
to the interests of the church and occasional speak- 
ing. They hold that it is as appropriate for a sister 
to publicly preach, exhort and instruct as a brother, 
and a portion of those who supply the place of the 
ministry are sisters. They affirm that those who 
labor in the ministry should do it "without money 
or price/' excepting those employed in foreign work, 
and then only as they are unable to pay their own 
expenses ; hence they do but little for foreign mis- 
sions. 

As might be expected, these public teachers are 
comparatively scarce, and preaching is still more 
scarce. In our community in Park county we would 
seldom have any preaching, except some traveling 



MY SCHOOL DAYS. 21 

Friend would come along providentially, or accident- 
ally, and would preach, which was not often, and 
we would sometimes have meetings nearly a year 
without any public instruction from the Scriptures. 

- As they never hold prayer-meetings, as others do, 
nor have any religious exercises that are lively and 
varied, a stranger finds that after attending their 
meetings once or twice, all their novelty is gone, and 
they appear very dull, dry and uninteresting. 

Yet the Quakers are so rigid in their habits and 
rules, and so regular in their ways, that, as the say- 
ing is, they are always on hand at their meetings, 
" fodder or no fodder." In this last respect, I wish 
our brethren of other churches were as faithful. 



CHAPTER II. 

QUAKER DOCTRINES. 

The doctrines of the Friends harmonize with those 
of all evangelical denominations, so far as pertains to 
the fundamental principles of Christianity. They 
believe in the authenticity of the Scriptures of the 
Old and Eew Testaments, as a revelation of the di- 
vine will, but do not admit that the Bible is, strictly 
speaking, the only rule of faith and practice, as they 
believe that each Christian is more or less under the 
immediate direction and inspiration of the Holy 
Ghost, and that it is the duty of all such to inquire 
what is the mind of the Spirit in relation to supposed 
duties not clearly pointed out in the "Word of God, or 
the Scriptures of Truth. The term " Word of God,'' 
as applied to the Scriptures, they reject, supposing 
it to be applicable only to Jesus Christ. 

They reject the outward forms of baptism and the 
Lord's Supper, believing water baptism to have been 
superseded by the baptism of the Holy Ghost, which 
is the only baptism now valid. • Instead of holding 
to literal communion, they believe that the only true 
communion is spiritual. 

Where both the parents are members, their chil- 
dren are considered as belonging to the church by 
birthright ; hence as soon as they are born they are 



QUAKER DOCTRINES. 23 

members. Though they move quietly through the 
world, in respect to infant church membership they 
are not so slow, but have thus managed to get a few 
days ahead of the Pedo-Baptist brethren generally. 
. They believe that war, whether offensive or de- 
fensive, is forbidden in the New Testament, and is 
unqualifiedly evil, and that it is their duty to refuse to 
bear arms in times of peace or war. Notwithstanding 
this sentiment, they have through the late rebellion 
been truly loyal, many of them having served 
through the war. A good story is told of an old 
Quaker who lived in the South. At the opening of 
the rebellion he was much abused and distressed by 
the rebels, and was finally driven out, with the loss 
of all his earthly goods. In this condition he sought 
refuge with a brother in Iowa. As he related to that 
brother his wrongs, his wrath waxed hot against the 
rebels, and in his anger he made some severe threats 
as to how he would use them if he could get the 
chance. His brother rebuked him for showing such 
a spirit, saying : " Thee ought not to talk so. 'I say 
unto you that ye resist not evil ; but whosoever shall 
smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other 
also.' ' Vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the 
Lord.' " " Ah ! but, brother/' said he, " if thee had 
been robbed, abused and insulted, as I have been, by 
those dirty Philistines, thee, too, would have felt very 
much like fighting!" And there were many of the 
Friends so incensed against the proceedings of the 
rebels, that they did fall into the ranks and fight 
manfully. They are all abolitionists " up to the hub," 
and believe slavery to be exceedingly sinful and vil- 



24 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

lainous, and that it is wicked to make any apology 
for it. Hence their sympathy for the slave and the 
fugitive from oppression. The Friends' anti-slavery 
sentiment is most happily represented in Mrs. 
Stowe's " Uncle Tom's Cabin," in the character 
of the "Friend" who assisted George and his wife 
to escape from their tormentors. I never yet knew 
a Quaker to show any symptoms of disloyalty. Du- 
ring the rebellion a gunboat was being built in Penn- 
sylvania, when, for want of timber, an old Quaker 
who had excellent timber was asked if he could not 
sell enough to complete the boat. His reply was : 
"I can not sell thee any for such purposes; but thee 
can look through my woods, and see if there is any 
that suits thee." 

Taking them upon the whole, I think that their 
fighting inclination is about as well represented in 
the following incident as by any that I can give : 

A vessel which was once sailing upon the ocean 
was attacked by pirates. There happened to be a 
Quaker on board, who of course did not believe in 
fighting, but seeing a pirate who had seized a rope 
and was trying to climb up the ship's side, he caught 
up an axe, and stepping up to the edge of the vessel 
he said, "Friend, if thee wishes to get that bit of 
rope, I will help thee to it." And so saying, he cut 
it in twain, when the pirate dropped into the sea and 
was drowned. 

As a sect they are, perhaps, the most strict against 
the use of ardent spirits of any in the world. They 
will discipline a member for selling corn to a distil- 
lery, or for stopping over night at an inn where 



QUAKER DOCTRINES. 25 

liquor is habitually sold ; or for furnishing barrels 
or casks to contain liquor, or in anyway aiding the 
commerce of the article. 

Ko member of the church is allowed to marry a 
person not belonging to the order. All proposals 
for marriage must come before the church, and the 
church decides upon the propriety or fitness of the 
union, and approves or disapproves as its wisdom 
may direct. 

Much more might be said about the peculiarities 
of the Quakers, but I will pass on. Suffice it to say, 
that in this class of people I was born, and I grew 
up to manhood with their ideas and views deeply 
rooted in my mind. I had been so little in the world 
outside of Quaker influence, that I knew but little 
about other doctrines, and cared but very little about 
them. 

The idea of a change of heart, by the agency of 
the Holy Spirit, being necessary to my soul's salva- 
tion, I had never heard of to my recollection. Though 
I was a member of the Quaker church when I became 
a man, I never had been converted to God. But 
being a member of the church, and supposing her 
doctrines and practices were just right, I felt no 
trouble about my soul's safety, because I was a 
member, and felt of course that all was right. 

I leaned upon the church for salvation, and trusted 
to my identity with it, as the ground of my hope; 
and, alas! it had well-nigh proved my ruin. The 
Quakers do hold, doctrinally, in their printed dec- 
larations, to the necessity of regeneration, but with 
them it is too much a dead letter. They practically 



26 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

lay little or no stress upon it, and overlook it, in 
their concern for smaller things. I can not remem- 
ber that I ever heard it mentioned in any of their 
exhortations or discourses. If I did, it was with no 
force of importance. 

They are generally an honest and industrious peo- 
ple, and as such I respect them, and would to God 
there were none worse than they ; but I must render 
my most solemn verdict against the Quaker church 
as an ark of safety for souls. 

Her practice with reference to church birthright 
and unregenerate membership, is unwarranted by 
the Bible, and fruitful in the ruin of souls. 

With all their sobriety and moral good, the greater 
part of them know nothing of regenerating, saving 
grace, and are deceiving their own souls. I desire 
to raise the voice of warning and sound the trumpet 
of alarm throughout the length and breadth of the 
land, for dying mortals to beware ! Place no hope 
of heaven upon the simple fact that you are a church 
member, or that you have a church birthright, or 
that you have been christened in infancy. If you 
lean upon these things you will be lost! "Verily, 
verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born agaiu 
he cannot see the kingdom of God."f 

f John iii. 3. 



CHAPTER III. 

MOVE TO IOWA — WOLF STORY — PRAIRIE BREAKING — 
SICKNESS — PROSPECTS OF MARRIAGE. 

In 1840, the western lands called the Black Hawk 
Purchase, now Iowa, was much talked of, and a 
number of the Friends concluded to emigrate. 
My father's family having become large, and need- 
ing a larger tract of land, he determined to go also. 
But upon consultation it was thought best that two 
of his boys should first go into the wild country and 
open a farm, and make some improvements before 
the family went. Accordingly my elder brother 
and myself, accompanied by a third brother, who 
went to assist us in driving the stock and imme- 
diately return, took our journey for the wild "West. 
After a trip of usual novelty in moving to a new 
country, in which we frequently met with Indians, 
who, though friendly, were strange creatures to us, 
we arrived safely on the Black Hawk Purchase, and 
made our cabin near where the town of New Salem 
now stands, in Henry county, Iowa. "We here 
found ourselves in a wild country indeed. In the 
latter part of our journey we would often travel 
from five to twenty-five miles without seeing a 
human habitation. We were on the borders of civi- 
lization. One more day's journey west would have 



28 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

taken us beyond the civilized world, where the 
Indian was the only sign of humanity. The greater 
part of Iowa was then a wild, trackless waste. "We 
were almost alone in our glory. Wild deer and 
wild Indians roamed over the prairies by day, and 
wild wolves kept up their hideous jargon at night. 
The wolf is one of the most sneaking and thievish 
animals in the world, and of the least use. They 
would sneak about in a cowardly manner in the 
day-time, but at night one would suppose from their 
noise that they claimed to be monarchs of the 
realm. One of them would make such a chorus of 
howls as to make us think there were a dozen ; and 
when there were a dozen, as was often the case, 
and sometimes more, their howling was terrific. 
Nothing is better calculated to make one feel a 
sense of utter loneliness than to listen from his cabin, 
on a dark, cheerless night, to their dismal howlings. 
Though they were cowardly, it was dangerous for 
us to be caught out at night when there were many, 
especially if they were hungry. At such times they 
gave us frequent hints that Quaker bacon would 
answer for a substitute. A settler, a number of 
miles from our cabin, determined one fall that as 
these " varmints" were so troublesome he would 
try a plan to thin them out a little, and have some 
fine sport into the bargain. 

Having taken his wagon-box about a mile out on 
the prairie, he moistened a rope with a solution of 
assafoetida, of which wolves are very fond, and taking 
his gun and his boy, he trailed the rope through the 
prairie from different points toward the wagon-box. 



WOLF STORY. 29 

About sunset he and the boy got under the box, and 
having provided port-holes to shoot through, they 
awaited the result. As it grew dark they heard one 
howl, then another, and another, and in a short time 
they were heard apparently in almost every direction 
for miles around. They drew nearer and howled 
louder, and increased in numbers, as though they 
were making a general rally for a grand carnival. 
Thought the man to himself, "I didn't mean to raise 
such a tremendous fuss as this. I wish I were at 
home ; this is more than I spoke for, but it 's too late 
now. On they come, like as if all creation was let 
loose. This old wagon-box looks rather shackling ; 
I wish it were stouter, but it can't be helped now." 
He was not long in making reflections, for the wolves 
were soon about him, yelling most terrifically, and he 
was occupied with shooting them. He killed a num- 
ber, but they were so greedy for the precious perfume, 
that they prowled about him in great numbers, and 
kept him besieged all night. He had no appetite for 
such an experiment again. 

One of the first things that now occupied our atten- 
tion was breaking up. the wild prairie, and we pre- 
pared ourselves with a full outfit for our new busi- 
ness. This outfit consisted of five yoke of cattle, 
with yokes and chains, a large prairie plow, with an 
extra share ; a file and a hammer, and a long buck- 
skin whip. It was arranged that I should carry the 
whip, drive the oxen, and thus be master of cere- 
monies. We were at first very awkward Quakers 
at this new business, but we soon learned the various 
mysteries of our calling, and thought we were among 



30 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

its master spirits. Oxen are the pioneer laborers of 
civilization, and as such are the founders of our na- 
tion's greatness. ]STo brute slave is more gentle or 
docile. None are more faithful, and yet none are so 
much abused. They serve the pioneer the best, 
because they can live without barns or stalls, almost 
without provision or expense, and almost without 
care ; hence they must give all their hard toil to the 
master for little or no remuneration. Shame on the 
man that will beat and abuse them ! When night 
came we unyoked the oxen from the plow, and 
hanging a bell upon "Old Tom," who was captain 
of the company, we would set them at liberty for the 
night, when they sought the cooling streams and 
delicious pasturage of nature's wilds, that grew in 
rich profusion upon every hand. In the morning 
their sleek coats and full sides showed their prepara- 
tion for another day's toil. My chief objection to 
my position was, that on warm days especially, the 
oxen seemed to be deaf, or hard of hearing, which 
taxed my lungs to the utmost, and required many 
loud snaps of the whip to make the team " move up." 
They were deaf enough, to be sure ; but I have since 
then been calling upon a certain class of creatures to 
repent, that are more deaf than they. 

Our family, for various reasons, did not come as 
soon as expected ; and finding no occupation more 
respectable or lucrative than prairie breaking, we 
adopted that as our regular business, and for two 
years we broke prairie for the new settlers who kept 
coming in. During this time we broke several hun- 
dred acres. There is now a goodly number of fine 



SICKNESS. 81 

farms in Iowa, upon which my brother and I were 
the first to break the sod. 

In 1842, my brother having grown tired of the 
prairies, sold out his western possessions, and re- 
turned to Indiana. This misstep he some years after 
repented and corrected. 

I was now left in the new country alone, with no 
relatives within several hundred miles, and began 
to feel somewhat lonely. In a short time I took the 
typhoid fever, and became a great sufferer. I was 
bed-fast for many long weeks, and for some time 
lingered between life and death, and I felt that truly 
dark days were come upon me. Through a merci- 
ful Providence, however, I found, in this time of my 
affliction, a couple of the kindest friends in the per- 
sons of William and Nellie Mathews. 

Had it not been for them, I verily believe I should 
have died. But they took me to their cabin and 
to their hearts, and gave me the best of care. For 
this I shall ever hold them in kind remembrance, 
and trust that at the judgment they will hear the 
Saviour say, " I was a stranger and ye took me in." 

After being under lengthy but skillful treatment 
from Doctor A., I gradually regained my health and 
strength. The attack, however, so affected my 
nervous system, that from that time to this, although 
I have been uniformly robust, my nerves have been 
so beyond my control that it is with difficulty I 
write a letter, and sometimes my hands and arms 
are so tremulous that I can scarcely hold a cup of 
tea. During this illness I felt, somehow, conscious 
that I was unfit to die ; but my chief feeling was 



32 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

alarm through fear of death. My seriousness was 
not such as led me to repent and seek the forgiving 
mercy of God, as I should have done, but I looked 
to the doctor as my only hope. Hence, on my re- 
covery I was indifferent to the subject of vital, 
religion, and as ignorant of it, as ever. 

Previous to this illness I had expected marriage 
with a young Quaker woman of good character and 
connections ; but before my recovery the affair 
turned out most strangely, and, I suppose the reader 
will think, with little credit to myself. Feeling, no 
doubt, solicitous for me, she came a number of 
miles on horseback to see me, which was certainly 
very kind. 

But while lying on my sick bed I overheard the 
woman of the house say, as I suppose she saw her 
in the distance, " Sam's sweetheart is coming !" 
"When I heard it my feelings toward her suddenly 
changed, in a strange manner, from a state of tender 
regard to one. of uncontrollable repulsiveness ; nor 
could I control this strange impulse sufficiently to 
speak to her when she .came in. The result was 
that she soon went away, and never spoke to me 
afterwards. She served me right. 

"Whether this feeling was caused by my enfeebled 
condition of body and mind from my long suffering, 
or had more particularly to do with the far-reaching 
providence of God, I cannot determine. She was 
an amiable girl, and, so far as I knew, was all that 
I could have desired. 



CHAPTER IV. 

TEACHES SCHOOL — TAKES THE AGUE — CAUSES OP AGUE 
AND ITS EFFECTS — TEACHES SCHOOL AMONG THE MOR- 
MONS — APPEARANCE OF THE SCHOOL HOUSE — CHARAC- 
TER OF THE SCHOOL — " TRYING THE MASTER'S PLUCK " 
— CONQUERING A PEACE. 

When I concluded that I could breast the storms 
of the outer world once more, I found myself out of 
business, and began to cast about as to what I should 
do. At this crisis I was urged to teach school, or, 
as they would say, to " keep school," in a settlement 
near by. " This," thought I, " is a new business — a 
step in advance, with new prospects; but am I 
adapted to it ? Can I succeed ?" 

I hesitated in making such a sudden change, from 
an ox-driver to a school-teacher, but being urged, I 
ventured. Enough settlers had gathered in to build 
a rude log school -house, and rally a good lot of 
children, and in this house I opened school. It was 
a rough beginning for a young college, but the 
world had to move some how, and we managed the 
best we could. Soon after the term commenced I 
was attacked with the ague, and generally shook 
every two days, as long as I remained in the school. 
However, it so happened that I managed to fully 



34 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

satisfy my employers and finish, the term, and was 
pronounced " a buncombe school-keeper." 

In those days the ague was our chief torment. 
As the prairie sod which was broken up by the 
new settlers would rot, its exhalations, together with 
those of the vast quantities of wild vegetation which 
decayed every year, loaded the air with such effluvia 
as to breed ague in abundance. 

Scarcely a family could escape it, and it was not 
a very uncommon thing to see families of which 
every member, from the oldest to the youngest, had 
it at the same time. Though it is not a fatal disease, 
it is exceedingly afflictive. The patient, or perhaps 
I should say the impatient, after a few shakes be- 
comes weak, poor, and peevish, irregular in appetite 
and gloomy in feeling. He is not sick enough to 
keep his bed, except during the shake and fever, nor is 
he well enough to work ; and in this intermediate, 
helpless condition he sometimes lingers for months, 
while he sees his business going to ruin. He may 
escape the chills for one or two weeks, and feel so 
much better that he will fancy he is almost well, and 
conclude to work a little ; but after a few hours' 
exertion, alas! he is as sick as ever. The poor 
creature will vainly try numerous remedies, for nearly 
every one he meets knows a " sure cure," and per- 
haps he sullenly resolves at last that he will " wear 
it out." The disease was so common in those early 
days of the West, that it was often said that even 
the dogs and cats were subject to it, and would 
sometimes shake with chills on a warm day. A 
certain adventurer, on one occasion, writing a de- 



CAUSES OF AGUE AND ITS EFFECTS. 35 

scription of the "West to his friends East, said, among 
other things, about as follows: "You wished to 
know, in your last letter, if we had much ague here, 
if it is very severe, etc. I reply that it is here in 
vast abundance — everybody has it. As to its severity, 
why, bless you ! you can have no idea — I can't de- 
scribe it. A quarrelsome wife is no comparison to 
it. It shakes all creation out here. It will shake a 
man out of bed and out of doors, and then shake 
the bedstead at him." 

Many of the first settlers who were much afflicted 
with ague and fevers, thinking that such diseases 
would always prevail, became discouraged and re- 
turned East with evil reports of the goodly land. 
This checked the tide of immigration very much for 
a number of years ; but as the fact became known 
that these troubles arose chiefly from transient causes, 
the cry was again, " Westward ho ! " 

Having become known as a teacher, some time 
after the close oi 1 my first term, an offer was sent me 
to take another school about twenty miles farther 
south. The condition and character of this school 
and its community were "hard." It was where the 
town of Chariest-own is now located, and not far from 
the once notorious city of iTauvoo. The inhabitants 
were made up chiefly of Mormons, many of whom 
were as hateful scamps as ever went unhung, and 
their children were just such progeny as one might 
expect from a settlement of that kind. They had a 
wretched house, but a large school. I soon found 
that I was going to have my hands full. They had 
usually employed female teachers, who being unable 



36 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

to master the school, would generally be driven out 
in a short time. Finally they had hired an old gen- 
tleman by the name of Meek. He was a decent man, 
but could not control the pupils. There was among 
them a number of large boys, or young men, from 
sixteen to twenty years of age, and knowing that the 
old man was afraid of them, they treated him with 
a good deal of impudence, and did about as they 
pleased; and whenever they took the notion, they 
would put the teacher out of doors, and raise Cain 
generally. As the pupils were too numerous for one 
teacher, it was arranged that I should be at the head 
of the school, and that the old man should be retained 
as an assistant. These matters being settled, I went 
to school one morning and took a survey of my new 
theatre of action. 

The house was built of rough logs, which were put 
up in such a bungling style that one would suppose 
that some person had done the carpenter work him- 
self. "Where the logs crossed each ether at the cor- 
ners they were from six inches to two feet too long. 
The crevices between the logs had been chinked with 
clay, which was still remaining, except such portions 
as had been knocked out by the boys. The concern 
was roofed over with clap-boards, but had no ceiling. 
The floor was made of puncheons which had been 
smoothed but very little, and the desks and seats 
were made of the same material, supported by 
wooden legs polished with an axe and put in with 
an auger. The door swung on large wood hinges 
secured by pins. There were two windows in the 
house, each one being two panes in depth ; room 






TEACHES SCHOOL AMONG THE MORMONS. 37 

had been made for them by cutting out a log on each 
side. The architectural beauty of the building was 
finally completed by the fire-place. This was a huge 
pile built of timber and rocks, and would accommo- 
date a back log six feet in length, with a large quan- 
tity of finer wood. 

But the school itself beggars description, and I 
will not attempt it. I verily never had seen such a 
pack of saucy, shabby, hopeless disciples, and I never 
have since. Thought I, " Surely I'm in for it." But 
the success of my first trial in teaching gave me self- 
confidence, and I resolved to go forward and risk the 
chances. As I expected, they began to experiment 
with me the first day, and that for the avowed pur- 
pose of " trying the master's pluck." 

Modern school teachers and doating parents talk 
very handsomely about new systems and mild meas- 
ures, and I am glad of the improvements in our 
schools, and the growing success of mild measures ; 
yet I think this success is more the result of an im- 
proved state of society than anything else. Now, I 
don't mean to philosophize and forget my story ; yet 
I cannot but wonder how the new order of things 
would work with such a gnarly lot of imps as those 
with whom I had to deal. 

I let them have rather loose rein the first day. I 
saw that nothing but strong doses, promptly admin- 
istered, could cure them. As soon as I dismissed for 
the night, I prepared, with the concurrence of the 
old man, a number of strict rules for the school, 
writing them down in order. I then went to the 
trustees, showed them the rules, and told them that 



38 AUTOBIOGKAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

if I taught the school I should carry out these rules 
to the letter, and should demand them to sustain me 
in it, urging that otherwise the attempt for reform 
would be hopeless. To all this they agreed. 

The next morning I cut some heavy whips, tough- 
ened them in the hot embers, and again opened 
school. The next thing I did was to read the rules. 
I then told the school that the first one who violated 
them might expect to get very rough handling. I 
put on a stern look, and assumed a demeanor alto- 
gether different from that of the day before, and went 
forward with the duties. 

They were not, however, to be awed into obedi- 
ence by rules or threats ; and it was not long before 
one overgrown young fellow perched himself upon 
a seat, and mocked me with all the impudence of a 
jackanapes. I bade him attend to his book, but he 
treated my order with contempt. I then went up to 
him coolly, and before he anticipated my movements, 
I suddenly caught him by the scalp-lock, jerked him 
across the writing-desk, keel downwards, and gave 
his back and hips such a sudden and severe vegeta- 
ble application that he bawled out lustily for help 
and mercy. 

The ball was now opened in earnest. General dis- 
order prevailed. Cries of " Help ! help ! " " Pull the 
master off!" " Knock him down ! " came from vari- 
ous quarters. A young man from the back end of 
the room rushed toward me with a knife drawn ; but 
to my good fortune my old colleague, acting as a 
reserve corps, met him with the big wooden fire- 
shovel and split it on his head. The tap proved to 



TEACHES SCHOOL AMONG THE MORMONS. 39 

be a lucky one for us, for it laid him sprawling on 
the floor. By this time several of the large boys 
were coming to the help of their companions ; but 
liaving tamed the first one, I turned upon them with 
all the ferocity I could command. At this they 
hesitated ; appearances were against them ; blood 
was flowing pretty freely already, especially from 
the one lying on the floor. They began to retreat. 
I then followed them up, and soon had the ground. 
Many of the smaller ones became frightened, and 
were for running home ; but I forbade them, and told 
them all to sit down and be orderly, and if they did 
not I would murder every mother's son of them ! 
They soon became quiet. The old man and I had 
conquered a peace, won the field, and showed them 
our " pluck." 

They were ever after as afraid of me as death. I 
had comparatively little trouble with them, and suc- 
ceeded in carrying out my rules to the letter. 

In the opinion of the more influential of the 
citizens, my reputation as a good " school-keeper " 
was thoroughly established. I taught this school a 
long time. During my stay there, however, various 
changes took place. The Mormons were driven out 
of the country and a better class of people began to 
settle in it, so that in a short time the social ele- 
ment of the community became tolerably decent. 



CHAPTER V. 

RISE OF MORMONS — THEIR STRANGE DOCTRINES— WORK- 
ING MIRACLES — JOKE ON A MORMON ELDER — BAPTIZING 

FOR THE DEAD MORMON PRAYER-MEETING FATE OF 

THE "GENTILES" — MORMON DIALOGUE — THE AUTHOR 
IS EXPECTED TO JOIN — THE "DANITES" — CORRUPTION 
OF THE "SAINTS" — SPIRITUAL WIFE SYSTEM — PREACH- 
ING OF ONE OF THE APOSTLES — TESTIMONY OF SIXTEEN 

WOMEN — ARREST OF THE PROPHET THE MORMONS 

DRIVEN OUT. 

The history of Mormonism presents one of the most 
shocking examples, illustrative of human credulity, 
that the enlightened world ever saw. The success 
of Joseph Smith, in rising from ohscurity and igno- 
rance and building up a sect of followers, gathered 
from different parts of the world, to the number of 
two hundred thousand or more, in so short a time, 
surely entitles him to the name of the "American 
Mohammed." In an early part of the history of the 
Upper Mississippi Valley, the Mormons and their 
enterprise created much public interest, and much 
was said about them, true and untrue. 

Since then, amid other exciting matters of national 
interest, they have been almost forgotten ; yet it will 
doubtless be instructing and interesting to the reader 
to hear something about them, from one who w T as a 



STRANGE MORMON DOCTRINES. 41 

near neighbor to them, and is personally acquainted 
with many facts and incidents concerning them. 
Like all other advocates of heresy, they preach some 
good doctrines ; and under certain circumstances 
you might listen to a Mormon elder, and hear 
nothing contrary to sound orthodoxy. But such a 
discourse would seldom occur. In fact, during my 
stay among them they labored ten times as much to 
establish error as to enforce useful truth ; and hence 
not only the religious interests, but the moral well- 
being of the people was unfavorably affected. Many 
of their ideas are very strange. For example : They 
teach that the kingdom of Christ was destroyed at 
the crucifixion, and has had no existence since until 
it was reestablished by Joseph Smith, who is the 
true prophet of God. They believe that now, since 
Joseph has done so much, true believers (that is, 
Latter-Day Saints) can heal the sick, cure the lame, 
restore the blind, and do all those miraculous thiDgs 
which were done, through faith, by the early Apos- 
tles of Christ. To bring in converts, their preachers 
went into various parts of the country and preached. 
They often told a miracle performed by the saints. 
It was a common thing to hear of obstinate diseases 
and dreadful afflictions suddenly cured by the mira- 
culous power of the true believers ; and these reports 
were speedily circulated among them. But though 
I lived several years just across the river opposite 
the Mormon city, and only a few miles from it, in a 
Mormon community, I never could get to see any 
such case ; nor could I get any other evidence of the 
truth of such reports than their simple statements. 



42 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

On one occasion a " Saint" went ont from Nauvoo 
to make converts among the " Gentiles," as all are 
called who are not Mormons, and took a lame brother 
along as a traveling companion. 

By his request an old preacher of the Christian 
connection permitted him to hold a meeting in his 
dwelling. After due notice the neighbors gathered 
in, and he earnestly preached that the true saints had 
the power of healing. He told them of a number 
of examples where he had cured and witnessed the 
cures of those who had been given up by physicians, 
and finally urged that all present ought to accept a 
religion so abundantly approved of God by signs 
and wonders. "When his discourse was ended, he 
said : "Now, if any one desires to speak, or ask any 
questions, he may." 

The old preacher now arose, and, first addressing 
the lame brother, said: "Brother J**** ? do you be- 
lieve what brother H**** has just preached?" 

" Certainly I do," said J****. 

Then turning to the Mormon preacher, he said : 
" Brother H****, do you really believe what you 
have preached ? " 

" Most surely I do, with all my heart," said H****. 

"Then," said the. old preacher, "just turn about 
now and heal your lame companion, and we '11 all 
believe ! " 

This was a stumper he could not manage, and 
there was no chance of relief but for him and his 
companion to leave the crowd and the community, 
which they did amid hearty laughter from the com 
pany. 



FATE OF THE "GENTILES." 43 

They have a singular custom of baptizing the 
living for their dead friends. I once saw a man 
baptized seven times for as many dead friends, 
before he came up out of the water. 

They sometimes had prayer meetings in the com- 
munity where I resided, but not often. On such 
occasions, where there were seldom any but Mor- 
mons, it was shocking to hear them talk and pray. 
In those days I did not care what people believed; 
I thought it of little concern to me whether they 
were saints or sinners ; and as I lived among the 
Mormons and was their school-teacher, I thought 
best for prudential reasons to have as little dispute 
with them as possible, and make myself as agreeable 
to them as I could. From this they became very 
hopeful for my conversion, and thought I was "not 
far from the kingdom." In my presence they seemed 
to feel no restraint in expressing their sentiments ; 
and I had abundant opportunity to thoroughly under- 
stand them. 

They declared that the day would soon come when 
God would so help them against their enemies, and 
visit such judgments on the "Gentiles," that they 
would flee to the " Saints" (that is, the Mormons) to 
plead for mercy and beg for br^l ; and that all that 
prevented them from doing it then was the forbear- 
ance of God. I went once to what they called a 
night prayer-meeting, in my school-house, to see 
how they conducted it. I there saw and heard what 
in substance was about as follows : Mr. Mowry, an 
eider, and a near neighbor, first arose in the meet- 
ing and said: "Brethren, we believe that Joseph 



44 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Smith is the true Prophet of God, and we must feel 
it our bounden duty to comply with any request or 
order which he may make." 

Here one of the brethren inquired, " Suppose he 
should order us to lay hands on the Gentiles, would 
not their laws punish us ? " 

" We do not consider their law as binding upon 
the true church of the Saints, and this is the order 
of Joseph, that if we lay hands on Gentile property 
and they arrest us, it is our duty to swear each other 
clear." 

Another asked, " Suppose Joseph should order us 
to go to Missouri and kill those who drove us out, 
would you go?" 

" Certainly I would go ; and if we were arrested 

and tried according to the laws of the d d 

Gentiles, I would help in swearing each other 
clear." 

After other questions and remarks more or less 
of this character, the elder kneeled down and prayed. 
In that prayer he said, among other things : " Lord, 
God of thy Saints, hasten on the day when the true 

church shall have it in its power to tramp the d d 

Gentiles under their feet, until their blood shall rise 
to the bits of the k^ses' bridles ! " 

There was a regular organization within the 
church, called the "Danite Band." No person could 
beconie a member of that band without first joining 
the church. One young man who belonged to this 
class, and who expected I would soon become a 
member of the church, urged that I ought to become 
a Mormon as soon as possible, and that when I did 



45 

I ought to join the "Danites." Partly from curi- 
osity and partly from mischief, I encouraged the 
fellow until I stole his confidence, when he revealed 
to me that their business was to gather the Lord's 
property into the church — that everything belonged 
to the Lord, and that they gathered it up, wherever 
and whenever they most conveniently could, among 
the accursed Gentiles. He said they made their 
reports to the .church every three months, and that 
it allowed them a certain percentage on all they 
gathered. They had to be pretty sharp and cautious, 
but some of them had made a good sum by it. If 
one of them did get arrested, his comrades were 
bound to swear him clear, if possible. 

I, of course, had heard all this before, though with 
some doubt as to the details ; but in view of the 
source from which it now came, and the circum- 
stances which called it forth, I was satisfied that a 
pack of more consummate scoundrels did not live in 
the "West. 

The old settlers in the counties adjoining Nauvoo, 
can well remember how much they were annoyed 
by this gang of rascals. They skulked about the 
country so much as to keep people in a constant 
state of uneasiness, and in consequence of them 
many quiet citizens moved away. It is true, as has 
been said, the thieves, gamblers and counterfeiters 
who infested that region, were not all Mormons. 
There were more or less of those scamps who 
haunted the vicinity of the Lower Rapids, who were 
of a more transient character. But granting this, 
the fact of their being around there so much shows 



46 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

that ISTauvoo was a congenial place for them, and 
illustrates the saying, that, 

' ' Birds of a feather • 
Will flock together." 

The Mormons never publicly advocated the Spirit- 
ual Wife System until a short time before they left 
Eauvoo. I heard Elder Page, one of the twelve 
Apostles, preach on the subject one evening in a 
private house, near my school. He tried to argue : 
First, from the Bible — describing in a very cunning 
manner the concubinage of Abraham, David, Solo- 
mon, and others, and claimed from these precedents 
the divine sanction of his doctrine. Secondly, from 
supposed benefits to be derived in the development 
of the human species. Said he, " Now we wisely 
follow the more excellent way in our efforts to im- 
prove the brute species, and by obeying the law of 
selection great improvements are made ; but of all 
the animals, man, who was originally the glory of 
creation, has become the most degenerate." Finally, 
said he, " I appeal to the good sense of the women. 
Look at this wretched world, see how it is filled up 
with poor, miserable, degenerated specimens of 
humanity. The greater part of them are not men ; 
they are but mere apes of the human kind. Eow, 
had not six or seven of you in company, rather all 
have one good man— a large, handsome, intelligent, 
noble, genteel man for a husband, than for each one 
of you to tie to a poor, scrubby, scabby, ugly, hair- 
brained, snotty-nosed baboon? To be sure, any 
sensible woman would. " 



TESTIMONY OF SIXTEEN WOMEN. 47 

This doctrine, however, was scarcely introduced, 
when it resulted in their confusion and dispersion. 
A Dr. Foster, who had been excommunicated from 
the church, and a man named Law, commenced the 
publication in i^auvoo itself, of a newspaper, called 
the Expositor. In the first number they printed 
the affidavits of sixteen women, to the effect that 
Smith, Eigdon, and others, had tried to seduce them 
under the plea of having special permission from 
Heaven. Soon after this the Mormons destroyed 
the office of the Expositor, and all its contents ; and 
the editors fled for their lives, and took refuge in 
Carthage. Here they applied for a warrant against 
Joseph and Hiram Smith, and sixteen others, known 
to have aided and abetted in putting down the Ex- 
positor office. The warrant was granted, and served 
upon Joseph Smith, but he refused to acknowledge 
its validity, and the constable who served it was 
marched out of E~auvoo by the city marshal. The 
authorities of the county could not suffer this affront 
to the law, and the militia were ordered out to 
support the county officer in the arrest of the two 
Smiths and their sixteen confederates. The Mor- 
mons in Eauvoo fortified the city, and determined 
to fight to the last extremity in support of the 
"Prophet." The "saints," from all parts of the 
country, hastened to give assistance. Illinois, like 
Missouri, divided itself into two great camps, the 
Mormons and the Anti-Mormons, and the circum- 
stances were so menacing that Gov. Ford took the 
field in person. In a proclamation to the people of 
Illinois he stated that he had discovered that noth- 



48 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ing but the utter destruction of the city of Eauvoo 
would satisfy the militia and troops under his com- 
mand, and that if they marched into the city, pretexts 
would not be wanting for the commencement of 
slaughter. 

Anxious to spare the effusion of blood, he called 
on. the two Smiths to surrender, promising that they 
should be defended and strictly dealt with according 
to law. They finally submitted, and were lodged in 
Carthage jail to await their trial. But the citizens 
of the adjoining country were so exasperated, that a 
short time after this, on the evening of the 27th of 
June, 1844, the guard at the jail was overpowered 
by a band of nearly two hundred men, with blackened 
faces, and the prisoners were killed. 

After this the Mormons relaxed for a time ; Brig- 
ham Young was appointed successor to Smith, and 
they renewed their work on the city and temple. 
But this state of affairs did not last long. New 
complaints arose from the citizens of the adjoining 
counties. Disputes and quarrels became more fre- 
quent, until, finally, in September, 1846, the city 
was besieged, and after three days' bombardment the 
Mormons were driven off. 

Before closing this chapter it is just to say, that 
there are also many Mormons who are well-disposed 
and sincere in their belief. This is more especially 
true of those who have never lived at headquarters, 
and consequently know nothing of the realities of 
Mormonism except by report. By its visionary ideas 
hundreds who have deserved a better fate have 
been deceived, and I cannot but pity them. 






i 



CHAPTER VI. 

AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 

During the time occupied in events of the two pre- 
ceding chapters, my father and his family had 
moved to Henry county, Iowa, and settled on the 
farm opened by my brother and myself. Many 
other Quakers had settled there also, and a Quaker 
village had been built containing three or four hun- 
dred inhabitants, called lew Salem. They had 
erected a meeting house, school house, comfortable 
dwellings, and had around them most of the im- 
provements of a regular " community." 

Though the Quakers are strict in the moral train- 
ing of their children, some of them, of course, are 
hard to train, and I suppose that I belonged to that 
class. I was not a law-breaker or a malicious per- 
son, yet I must say that I was as full of mischief and 
frolic as an egg is of meat, and far from God by 
wicked worka. I was about that age when young 
men are said to " sow their wild oats," and the social 
influences which had surrounded me in the new 
country were unfavorable to a sober life. 

On renewing acquaintance among the young 
Quakers at New Salem, I found a number of them 
who were as fond of sport as I, and they were ever 
3 



50 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ready for a frolic when they could slip from under 
the watchful eyes of the old folks. 

A Methodist class was organized in the vicinity of 
JSTew Salem, and we young Quakers were present. 
It being a new thing to us we thought it a capital 
show. The praying, preaching, and especially the 
singing, seemed to us very novel. After attending 
one of these meetings, we concluded that as they 
were so interesting we must have one of our own. 
Accordingly, on the following Sabbath, fifteen or 
twenty of us went into the woods, arranged some 
old logs for seats, and held a mock class -meeting. 
Though we made much awkward work, especially 
with the singing, we felt that we enjoyed it hugely. 
"We thought there was so much sport in it 'that we 
would have another, and we agreed that it should 
occur in two weeks from that time. 

It was arranged that our next meeting should be 
more systematic. I was to preach, "W". "W. P. was 
to do the praying, and the rest were to do the sing- 
ing and attend to the am ens, shouting, rubbing of 
hands, groaning, etc. In the meantime a preacher's 
stand was to be erected, and all were to prepare to 
act well their part. "With this understanding we 
adjourned to our homes. 

I privately determined that during that two weeks 
I would carefully think up a good sermon and have 
it in readiness, that when the meeting occurred I 
would astonish them all at my preaching ability. 

One would naturally suppose that I must have felt 
some uneasiness of conscience while, during those 
two weeks, I was preparing to act out before my 



AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 51 

young companions such a heaven-daring mockery, 
and to venture with impudent hardihood upon such 
ground as angels fear to tread; but no — so hard was 
my heart and so great was my moral distance from 
God! I knew it was folly and thought it was a 
strange experiment, and had some feeling of its 
awkwardness and inconsistency ; but I knew nothing 
of the doctrine of new birth by the Spirit, and the 
necessity of a deep repentance of sin at the foot of 
the cross. I had no knowlege of that faith in Christ 
which is necessary to salvation. My religious in- 
struction had not been such as to open these doctrines 
before me, and I went forward in preparations for 
this mock solemnity without a just conception of its 
exceeding sinfulness. May God in his mercy blot it 
from the book of his remembrance ! 

On the day appointed a good number of us gath- 
ered on the ground, with fine prospects for a jolly 

time. "W. "W. P made the opening prayer, and 

did well, considering. A hymn was lined, and sing- 
ing attempted, but none of us had ever heard singing 
enough to know how to carry a tune, and the music 
was a poor apology. This ended, I arose in the stand 
and announced my text in these words : 

"Who is Christ?" 

But I could not say another word. By some cause, 
I knew not what, I suddenly became confused, 
speechless, and terrified. My companions afterward 
said that my hair stood erect, and I was as pale as a 
corpse. I immediately left the ground, with the rest 



52 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

after me, all in great fright. This at once, and for- 
ever, put an end to our mock meetings. 

It since appears that God, in his mercy, instead of 
cutting me down in my iniquity, meant to teach me 
in the severe school of his providence, and by the 
wonders of his grace, how to preach in earnest, and 
how to teach doctrines which to me were then un- 
known, and how to preach a gospel to which I was 
a stranger. 

As soon as I got away from the place of meeting 
and its vicinity, my fright left me, and my feelings 
were quiet. I never could tell the real cause of my 
fear, and cannot yet account for it, otherwise than 
to regard it as a sudden and special visitation from 
God. My feelings were frightful, yet they were vague 
and indefinable; and one thing that still appears 
strange to me is, that the effect so soon left me. 

Some time after this, at the close of a school I had 
been teaching in another part of the country, I went 
one night with some young companions to a ball. 
The fiddle came in due season, and I danced until 
four o'clock in the morning. At the close of the 
dance I went to a settlement two miles fromM****, 
and hired to teach another school. I immediately 
engaged boarding in a tavern, and began to fix my- 
self for a winter's stay. On the first evening, supper 
beino* over, while the boarders were seated around 
the bar-room fire, the conversation turned upon a 
religious meeting that was to be held at the school- 
house by a Mr. M****, who was to preach there that 
evening, and after some talk as to the prospects of an 
interesting meeting, the majority concluded to go, 






AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 53 

and I went alon^. The house was much crowded 
with people before we arrived, but, though with 
some difficulty, I found room to stand near the door. 
The place of worship was built of rough logs, and 
covered with clap-boards. It had two or three small 
windows, a large rude fire-place in the back end, and 
in every way corresponded with the times. As I 
entered, the people were singing. With this I was 
delighted, for I had seldom heard it in a religious 
assembly. The preacher arose to pray. I thought 
he was certainly a dull, stupid, ignorant man. His 
hair hung in strings and mats about his neck and 
shoulders, and half concealed his forehead. In short, 
his head bore a striking resemblance to a brush-heap. 
His clothes were worn and tattered, and his figure 
was lean and crooked. He began his prayer in a 
very bungling manner. I thought I was " sold" in 
coming to the meeting, and was more than half 
decided to go back; for, thought I, I don't care 
about hearing that man attempt to preach. Yet I 
did not start. The preacher tried to read a hymn, 
which he did with much difficulty, being obliged to 
stop occasionally to spell out the hard words. I 
thought again I would leave, but waited to hear the 
singing, which finally went off to my satisfaction. I 
then thought I would remain a little while and hear 
what the old man would make out, to satisfy my 
curiosity. The text was in Matthew, and his subject 
was the Judgment. He began in a very dull, awk- 
ward manner , but after a while he seemed more 
animated and interesting. His animation increased 
as he advanced in the discourse, until his intellect 



54 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

seemed to be fully aroused and his soul fixed with 
inspiration. 

His feelings ran up to the highest pitch of sym- 
pathy for the sinner, and his exhortations became 
eloquent and powerful. My mind at length became 
so riveted upon the speaker that I forgot the crowd 
of people who were. crammed around me, and every 
thing besides but the preaching and myself. I felt a 
strange sense of guilt come over me. The sermon, 
as with a bright lamp, searched by inmost soul. My 
sins were exposed to view in such a way as I never 
before imagined. I felt that I was one of the vilest 
sinners God had ever permitted to live. Yet the 
preacher went on, and spared me not. He so pre- 
sented my guilt in the light of the judgment, that I 
thought he was preaching expressly to me, and my 
awakened conscience said, " Thou art the man!" I 
thought that by some means, perhaps supernatural, 
the preacher knew all about me, and was now expos- 
ing me. I trembled with solemn awe. 

When meeting was dismissed I went home with 
my landlord, feeling the keenest remorse, and a most 
distressing anxiety about my soul's well-being. I 
soon began to be sorry I had gone to the meeting, 
and tried to shake off my feelings. I tried to reason 
with myself, and in this I suppose Satan helped me 
as follows: "I am a member of the Quaker church, 
and always have been, and so are my parents. I have 
no reason to fear; these fears are foolish. Before I 
went to that meeting I felt well enough, and I stand 
on the same footing now. I have always enjoyed 
life; I have had mirth to my full, and if I had kept 

i 



AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 55 

away from that meeting, I would be happy now; but 
I have been so silly as to go there, and now I am 
miserable. I am provoked at myself beyond endu- 
rance for having gone there. What a fool I was! 
The preaching has done me more harm than good; it 
makes me worse, and unhappy in the bargain; I'll 
have no more to do with it. These praying and 
preaching people try to scare folks on purpose; they 
are nothing but a set of hypocrites; they had better 
mind their own business. I'll shun their company, 
that's what Til do; and I want them to steer clear 
of me." Thus, with my mind full of rebellious 
thoughts, I hastened to bed, not wishing to speak 
to any one; but with all these flimsy arguments I 
could not banish my troubles ; an awful sense of guilt 
pressed upon me. I commenced my duties in school, 
yet was often but half conscious of what I was doing; 
my mind remained gloomy and my feelings morose 
and sullen. I heard that in two weeks from the 
previous meeting another was to occur, eight miles 
distant, and it provoked me to hear of it. I felt 
determined that I should not go near such a place 
again. But as the days passed by, in spite of all I 
could do, my distress of soul continued. I tried 
various expedients, but to no purpose; and when 
the time of the meeting arrived, I felt somehow that 
I must go, and I traveled the eight miles through 
the snow on foot, hoping that some change might 
be made in my feelings, I thought that possibly they 
would leave me ; I listened attentively to the preach- 
ing, and carefully watched all the exercises of the 
meeting; but, alas! it only revived my sense of 



56 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

guilt, and arrayed my sins anew before me, causing 
me to feel, if possible, worse than before, and to bate 
existence. On my journey borne I wisbed I were 
anybody or anything but Samuel Pickard. In my 
distress I saw a hog by the road-side, and envied his 
lot. I heartily wished I was a hog, because, thought 
I, "I could then quietly eat, drink, and die, without 
such tormenting, tantalizing fears on account of sin 
and the great judgment to come. I returned to my 
school and continued to discharge my duties the best 
I could; but no permanent change occurred in my 
feelings, and I feared I should never have another 
happy day, in time or eternity. A few days after 
the meeting I heard that a dance was to take place 
in the neighborhood, and I received it as most wel- 
come news ; for, thought I, " I have found delight in 
such places/' and, like Solomon, I said to my heart, 
" Go to, now, I will prove thee with mirth." I went, 
but in our first attempt to dance, the fiddle-strings 
broke, and could not be repaired; thus our prospects 
were suddenly blasted. We tried to turn the dance 
into a play, but somehow we could not make it go, 
and the whole affair turned out a failure and a 
disappointment. I here met with the young lady 
who afterwards became my wife, and engaged to 
escort her home, according to customary civilities; 
but in this I was doomed to the most mortifying 
failure of all: we had not gone far on our journey 
when such a consciousness of my dreadful situation 
as a sinner came over me, and so affected me, that 
in spite of all I could do, my knees gave way with 
weakness, and I sank helpless to the ground. There 



AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 57 

were very few professors of religion in the country, 
and I had felt ashamed to reveal my state of mind, 
for I knew I should be laughed at, and I kept it a 
dead secret. "When my lady saw me sprawled upon 
the ground, she felt, no doubt, that she had taken 
up with a poor apology for a beau, and was verj 
much embarrassed; she would walk around me, or 
stand and look, as though she did not know what 
on earth to do. I felt sorry for her, and pitied 
myself, but could not help any. She attempted to 
raise me up and help me along, but it was no use, 
my legs would not go; they seemed like strings. 
Finally, some people from the party came up, on 
their way home, and carried me back to the house 
whence we started. I remained in this helpless 
condition several days, and was urged to try remedies, 
but refused all medical aid. My friends said, "You 
ought to quit school ; it is killing you, you look so 
poorly." As soon as I was able to walk I resumed 
my duties as teacher, but the troubles of my mind 
now began to tell most seriously upon my health. I 
lost my appetite, became pale and emaciated, and 
feared that I should die. Oh, the agony I endured 
through those long r dreary, weeks of conviction! 
Well did it teach me how to sympathize with and 
counsel those who are crushed under the strokes of 
God's insulted law ! Had I sought the company of 
some warm Christian, I might have been instructed, 
and led to light and comfort; but no, my proud 
heart spurned the idea of becoming one of those 
solemn, praying creatures, whom I had seen con- 
ducting meeting; it was contrary to my notions, 



58 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

tastes, and appetites,, and repulsive in every respect. 

An appointment for an evening prayer meeting 
to be held five miles distant came round. I did 
not want to go, yet I felt that I must. At that meet- 
ing I saw several go to the anxious seat for prayers ; 
among them my future wife. I wanted to how 
there, too, hut believed that I was too vile to have 
any right at such a place. I supposed that those 
who went to the anxious seat did not think them- 
selves so wicked as I thought myself to be, or they 
would not have gone there, and I left the meeting 
with my grief still secret in my soul, to be troubled 
with gloomy thoughts by day and fearful dreams by 
night. 

Finally, some weeks after this I attended another 
prayer meeting, and while the people prayed and ex- 
horted I communed with my heart, and felt that I 
should soon die if I continued in such distressing anxi- 
ety. I knew that I had tried every mortal expedient 
that I could devise for my relief, and all was vain. I 
thought I should surely not only die in this world, but 
spend an awful eternity in the world to come, "where 
the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched." I 
saw that I was brought to a complete extremity, and 
that God alone could save me through the mercy of 
Christ. I felt that I had but precious little time left 
in which to decide the controversy. My feelings at 
that time are fitly described by a poet : — 

il Lo, on a narrow neck of laud, 
'Twixt two unbounded seas I stand ; 
A point of lime, a moment's space, 
Removes me to that heavenly place, 
Or shuts me up in hell !" 



AWAKENING AND CONVERSION. 59 

I felt that I was sinking under the weight of God's 
wrath, and that I would surely be in hell in a little 
time if I received not help from him, and from the 
jiepths of my heart I pleaded for mercy. My stub- 
bornness was gone. I humbled myself under his 
mighty hand, and looked with earnest pleadings to 
Christ. I knew that if I were damned it was just, 
if saved it was mercy. So intent was I in begging 
for divine mercy, that I lost sense of what was pass- 
ing around me. 

At last, while the brethren were singing the 
words — 

"Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone, 11 

the hand of God appeared to be gently placed be- 
neath me, and my soul seemed to rise from its low 
estate as upon the wings of eagles. The dark night 
of bitterness and sorrow receded from my soul. The 
day of hope dawned, and the Sun of Righteousness 
arose with healing in his wings. I rejoiced with joy 
unspeakable, and was filled with that peace which 
passeth all understanding ! 

-' Oh ! the rapturous height 
Of that holy delight, 
Which I felt in his life-giving blood.' 1 

Methinks an angel's tongue could not tell half 
the joy of my first love with Christ. The gift of a 
crown and scepter I would have prized as insignifi- 
cant, compared with the gift of immortal hope which 
I then received through our Lord Jesus Christ. My 
desire to keep my feelings secret at once vanished, 
and the brethren rejoiced with me that the dead 
was alive and the lost was found. It was a moon- 



60 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

light night, and on my way home it seemed to me 
that the appearance of the world had changed, and 
that nature had arrayed herself as for some grand 
festivity to rejoice with me. I thought the whole 
dome of heaven seemed as one vast amphitheater of 
glory, and that the stars shone with unearthly luster. 
The landscape that lay around me, though half con- 
cealed in the shadows of the night, seemed of the 
rarest "beauty and sublimity. 

Though long years of toil, with their varied scenes 
of light and shade, have passed since then, I can yet 
sing — 

" Oh happy day that fixed my choice 
On thee, my Saviour and my God ; 
Well may this glowing heart rejoice, 
And tell its wonders all abroad." 



CHAPTEK VII. 



CHOOSING A CHURCH. 



Up to the time of my conversion I had heard very 
little said about churches and sects, nor was I dis- 
posed to give much attention to the subject. Having 
been raised a Quaker, I knew something of that 
church, and supposing it was all right, I thought 
that was sufficient ; but as to creeds outside of that, 
I was perhaps as ignorant as any convert ever was 
at my age. 

As soon, however, as I received joy in believing, 
the Bible seemed to me as an unsealed book. I 
delighted to study it, and it became my daily coun- 
selor and companion. 

The New Testament showed very clearly, I thought, 
that churches existed in the days of the Apostles, 
for it speaks of a church at Jerusalem,* "the church 
at Smyrna,"f " the church in Pergamos," J and in the 
same way does it speak in many other places. § I 
could see that God had established churches, and 
that it was the duty and high privilege of a Christian 
to be in one. I supposed, of course, that the vari- 
ous churches alluded to in the E"ew Testament were 
of one faith and order, but as I looked around me I 

* Acts xv : 2. f R ev. ii : 8. % Re ^- " : 12. § See 1 Cor. i : 2 ; 
Col. iv : 16 ; 1 Thes. i : 1 ; Eev. ii : 1, 8 ; iii : 1 ; iii : 7, etc. 



62 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

saw that there were a great many different kinds of 
churches, called by different names, and all more or 
less at variance with each other in faith and order. 
It was pleasant for me to know, however, that these 
churches claimed to have and worship the same God 
and Saviour, and strive for the same heaven. I felt 
a strong attachment for the Quakers, but aside from 
this I had a glowing heart and loved all the praying 
people with whom I met, and thought it a great 
pity that there were divisions in sentiment and feel- 
ing among Christians. With this unbiased state of 
mind I resolved to join some church; but when I 
began to ask counsel as to the best one, some said, 
"Lo, here !" others said, "Lo, there !" and yet others 
said, " Lo, yonder !" The consequence was that I 
became very much confused and knew not what 
to do. 

I finally concluded that they could not all be right 
in theology and have so many opposites — that God 
would surely not establish a number of churches, and 
then give to the world so many different sets of 
doctrines to suit those churches and accommodate 
the numerous tastes of men. On reflection, it 
seemed clear to me that God was a being of one 
mind. 

The question would then arise, " Which is the 
true Church ? " I felt that I must find an answer to 
the question, if possible, that would satisfy my mind. 
"For," thought I, "this is a matter of solemn import 
which concerns my usefulness and happiness for life, 
and perhaps for eternity." 



BAPTISM. 63 

While reading the Testament, my attention was 
directed to such passages as the following : 

" Search the Scriptures ; for in them ye think ye 
have eternal life ; and they are they which testify of 
me." * 

" All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and 
is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for instruction 
in righteousness ; that the man of God may be per- 
fect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." f 

" Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures." J 

"With passages of this character before me, I re- 
solved to take my time, and study God's Word care- 
fully and diligently, for "doctrine" and "instruction 
in righteousness." 

I believed that God had established a church as a 
home for his people, and that in his Word its model 
could be found. I felt satisfied that in taking this 
course I should get my information from the best 
authority. I was cautioned in due time by the Book 
of God, which says that " Some wrest the Scriptures 
unto their own destruction ; " § and I read with a 
praying heart that I might learn the will of God and 
be led into the truth. 

I soon saw that it was my first duty, as a disciple 
of Christ, to be baptized. This was clear from the 
great commission of the Apostles. The Saviour said 
to them, "Go ye therefore and teach all nations ; 
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of 
the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." || "He that believ- 

* John v : 39. f 2d Tim. iii : 16, *l. \ Matt, xxii : 29. 

§ 2d Pet. iii : 16. \ Matt, xxviii : 19. 



64 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

eth and is baptized shall be saved ; but he that be- 
lieveth not shall be damned." * 

These, and other passages, showed me that it was 
not only my right to be baptized, but it was a duty 
I should not $are to omit. 

My practice was, as often as I found a passage 
relating to any prominent doctrine, to mark down 
the chapter and verse under its appropriate head, on 
paper ; and thus I would collect in one body all the 
passages relating to that subject. I then read and 
meditated upon them with reference to the doctrines 
they contained, and my duty respecting them ; nor 
did I lay by a particular subject until my mind was 
at ease concerning it. I of course sought such other 
helps as could be found ; but Iowa at that time was 
not a land of books or scholars, and the Bible was 
my dependence. 

The mode of baptism next occupied my attention. 
I noticed upon this subject the fact that John and the 
Apostles habitually baptized in rivers and places of 
much water. This was seen in such passages as the 
following : " And John also was baptizing in ^Enon, 
near to Salim, because there was much water there. "f 
Here it was easy to see that a reason was given why 
John baptized in ^Enon ; and this is the reason : "be- 
cause there was much water there." From this it 
seemed evident that much water was required in 
baptizing, or this would not have been given as the 
only reason. I thought that no other mode of bap- 
tism but immersion would require " much water." 

* Mark xvi : 16. f John iii : 23. 



BAPTISM. 65 

If the mode had been by sprinkling — which, as is 
commonly the case, requires only enough water to 
wet the tips of the administrator's two fore-fingers, 
which he touches against the forehead — one gallon 
of water would have baptized thousands, and "much 
water" would not have been required. 

" Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, 
and all the region round about Jordan, and were bap- 
tized of him in Jordan confessing their sins." * 

" Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto 
John, to be baptized of him." f 

" And as they went on their way they came unto 
a certain water, and the eunuch said, See, here is 
water ; what doth hinder me to be baptized ? " % 

"And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a 
river side. . . . And a certain woman named Lydia .... 
heard us ... . and when she was baptized and her 
household," etc. 

" John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach 
the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, 
and there went out unto him all the land of Judea 
and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him 
in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins." § 

Again, I noticed that the actions frequently asso- 
ciated with baptism were those of going down into 
the water, and coming up out of the water. 

For example : "And Jesus, when he was baptized, 
went up straightway out of the water." || 

"And straightway coming up out of the water, he 
saw the heavens opened. "f 

* Matt, iii : 5, 6. f Matt, iii: 13. J Acts viii : 36. 

§ Mark i : 4. fl Matt, iii : 16 % Mark i : 10. 



66 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

"And he commanded the chariot to stand still, 
and they went down both into the water, both Philip 
and the eunuch ; and he baptized him. And when 
they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the 
Lord caught away Philip, and the eunuch saw him 
no more." * 

I thought, and very naturally, I believe, that such 
Scriptures pointed to immersion as the true mode of 
baptism. 

Again, I observed that the New Testament repre- 
sented Christian baptism as a burial. For example : 

" Know ye not that so many of us as were bap- 
tized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into 
death." " For if we have been planted together in 
the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the like- 
ness of his resurrection." f 

"Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are 
risen with him." J 

I thought that surely immersion was the only mode 
of baptism which could be represented by the figure 
of a burial. By this plan of inquiry I became satis- 
fied as to the mode, and have believed in immersion, 
as the true apostolic practice, ever since. 

Had I not taken to the Bible as my only reliable 
counselor, I should, perhaps, have never been bap- 
tized by any method. The Quakers believe that 
water baptism has been done away, and superseded 
by the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Hence, without 
any prejudice to favor it, I was made an immersion- 
ist by the Bible. 

* Acts viii : 38, 39. \ Rom. vi : 3-5. \ Ools. 2 : 12. 



BAPTISM. 67 

Allow me, with due deference, to recommend all 
my Quaker friends and relatives who may read this 
narrative, to place less dependence upon their hooks 
of discipline and their inculcated opinions, and give 
more importance to the study of the Bible. Though 
it he true that your discipline and your instructors, 
in the main, are good, and teach you many good 
things, remember that they are not inspired, and the 
Bible is. They may be wrong, but the Bible can- 
not be. 

While reading the Scriptures, it seemed to me to 
show that one characteristic feature of the ^"ew Tes- 
tament church was, its being made up of baptized 
believers. With this impression I searched out the 
passages which I thought had a bearing upon that 
point. Some of them I will here quote : 

" Then they that gladly received the Word were 
baptized ; and the same day there were added unto 
them about three thousand souls. And they contin- 
ued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellow- 
ship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers." * 

The divine order of things here appears very plain. 
First, they "gladly received the Word, that is, they 
believed ; secondly, they "were baptized ; " thirdly, 
they were added unto them : from which it is plain 
that they all believed and id ox all baptized before they 
became members of the church. 

" Paul, unto the church of God which is at Co- 
rinth Is Christ divided ? Was Paul crucified for 

you ? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul ? " f 

* Acts ii : 41 ,42. f 1 Cor. i : 1-13, 



68 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Here lie alludes to the fact of their having been 
baptized into Christ, as a reason why the Corinthian 
brethren ought to regard him as their supreme head, 
and not give undue importance to any one of the 
Apostles. 

To the Romans, Paul says: "Therefore we are 
buried with him by baptism."* By this I under- 
stood the apostle as recognizing the fact, that the 
Roman brethren, as well as himself, had been baptized. 
"We are baptized." But I cannot dwell, to refer 
to all the Scriptures which I studied as relating to 
this point. 

I was fully convinced at an early period of my 
studies, that the New Testament showed that a per- 
son must be a believer, before he was a fit subject 
for baptism. I could find no place where it recog- 
nized any other as a suitable candidate. Among 
the many proofs I found, here are a few: "He that 
believeth and is baptized shall be saved."f " They 
that gladly received the "Word were baptized. "J Of 
the Samaritans it is said, " But when they believed 
Philip, preaching the things concerning the kingdom 
of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were 
baptized, both men and women."§ The eunuch said 
before he was baptized, " I believe that Jesus Christ 
is the Son of God." "Philip said, If thou believest 
with all thine heart thou mayest."|| Which I thought 
equivalent to saying, "If you do not believe with all 
your heart you may not be baptized." " Many of 
the Corinthians hearing, believed and were baptized."Tf 

* Rom. vi:4. f Mark, xvi : 16. $ Acts iii : 41. § Acta viii : 12. 
|| Acts viii : 37. *Jf Acts xviii : 8. 



BAPTISM. 69 

So it was in the case of Lydia,* the Philippian 
jailor,f Saul of Tarsus,{ and others. 

Having heard that it was the practice of many 
churches to sprinkle infants, I supposed the doctrine 
could be found in the Bible, and in my reading I 
looked carefully for it. ~Not finding it as readily as 
I expected, I thought at first that I must have over- 
looked it; but finally, after diligent search, I was 
unable to find a single passage of Scripture that gave 
any authority or encouragement for the practice, 
nor have I been able to find one to this day. I 
learned afterward, however, that the leading advo- 
cates of the doctrine said, " We do not claim to find 
any express command in the Bible for the baptism 
of infants,"§ and I was brought to agree with them 
in that fact, and hence I dismissed the subject as not 
belonging to Bible studies. 

Thus I took up also the several doctrines of church 
government, regeneration, repentance, sanctification, 
and others. I was unable, of course, to consider those 
doctrines in their natural order, or to have a very 
definite understanding of their relations to each 
other. I pursued those studies with regard to doc- 
trines in about the same arrangement of order that 
I have referred to them in this chapter ; yet, how- 
ever rudely those doctrines were arranged in my 
mind, I became well established and settled in my 
views in regard to most of them, with very little 
help or influence outside of the Bible. For some 
months, every hour and moment I could spare, and 

* Acts xvi : 14. f Acts xvi : 31. \ Acts ix : 18. § Bishop Morris 
an 3 Henry Ward Beecher. 



70 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

some that I could not very well spare, were given to 
the study of the Scriptures. 

I was thus not only set at rest in regard to many 
doctrines, but the exercise greatly strengthened me 
in spirit, and gave me such a familiarity with the 
Word of GTod that I could repeat chapters and verses 
from memory until I would be weary. I now look 
back upon that time as one of the best spent seasons 
of my past life. I have often felt the benefit of it 
since, and perhaps will to the end of my days. 

In studying the model New Testament church, it 
was clear to my mind that these were some of the 
conditions under which it existed : — 

1. Its members had all repented of sin. 

2. They were true believers in Christ. 

3. After believing they had been baptized. 

4. They had been baptized by immersion. 

5. They endeavored to live holy lives. 

6. They were a missionary people, and gave labors, 
prayers, and money to send the gospel to every 
creature. 

In the spring after my conversion, I learned that 
several persons were to be baptized a number of miles 
off, in the Des Moines river. I did not know what 
denomination of people was to hold the meeting, 
but having never witnessed the ordinance, I went, 
and after a sermon I saw, with most happy feelings, 
several converts buried and raised from the watery 
grave. I had heard that baptism by immersion was 
an " unpleasant spectacle," but I then thought I had 
never witnessed anything more scriptural or more 
appropriate and beautiful. When I first began to 



BAPTISM. 71 

think about water baptism I was most inclined to 
favor sprinkling or pouring, for the simple reason 
that it seemed most convenient; but as the Scrip- 
tures encouraged no such argument, I thought it 
ought not to be consulted, and I thought that if I 
should still have seen any force in the argument of 
convenience it would now have vanished as I wit- 
nessed this appropriate and beautiful sight. The 
minister announced an appointment to preach in two 
weeks from that time at the same place and dismissed 
the assembly. I then introduced myself to the 
minister and began to ask him what his church held 
in respect to various doctrines, when he gave me a 
copy of its articles of faith, telling me to look them 
over carefully and compare them with the Bible. 

I saw from the title that they were of " the Regu- 
lar Baptist Church." During a number of days which 
followed, I gave much time to the examination of 
those articles, and compared them with the Scrip- 
tures. The quotations marked in them gave me new 
assistance in searching the Word of God, and I was 
very much benefited in the exercise. As soon as I 
examined them, I found that the views they held 
forth bore a striking resemblance to those doctrinal 
outlines which had been formed in my mind by pre- 
vious study of the Bible, and I was so well pleased 
with them that I at once resolved to present my 
unworthy self at the next appointment as a candidate 
for baptism and membership in the Baptist Church. 

I- went to the meeting and made known my desires. 
The pastor requested that I should tell the church 
my Christian experience, before they voted on my 



72 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

acceptance. This I essayed to do, but was so much 
embarrassed, I could not tell half I wanted to ; yet 
those Christian people saw that I loved Jesus, be- 
lieved me to be regenerated, and voted unanimously 
to receive me. My heart was touched and melted at 
the kindness and readiness with which they accepted 
me ; and the thought that I, who was once so vile, 
should be given a home among the dear people of 
God ! All then repaired to the " river side, where 
prayer was wont to be made," and after a brief but 
impressive address by the man of God, upon the 
solemnity and importance of the sacred ordinance, 
during which tears stood in many eyes, and after a 
prayer was offered, poor unworthy I was led down 
into the Jordan, and in the presence of many wit- 
nesses, on the eighth day of June, 1843, was gently 
laid into the mystic grave. 

Oh ! the joys of that hour ! I shall never forget it 
in time or eternity. My soul was filled with peace ; 
and as I thought upon the great things God had done 
for me, I was lost in wonder, love and praise, and I 
journeyed home with a light heart, trying to sing — 

" How happy are they, 
Who their Saviour obey I" 

Ever since that time, though my short-comings 
have been many, I have had an undisputed place in 
the church of Christ. 

Reader, before closing this chapter, let me offer a 
reflection. It is too common a thing in these days, 
that when a convert is seeking to know truth and 
duty, there are many ready to lend him a book of 



DUTY TO CONVERTS. 73 

discipline, or a catechism, or other prints of sectarian 
production, doctrinal or controversial; and many 
persons are ready to become eatechists to proselyte 
him to their cause. The result is, that his mind is 
turned one way or the other, according to the per- 
sonal views of the authors whose arguments he may 
read or to whose counsels he may listen, when he 
ought to be studying the sure Word of God. My 
candid opinion is, that he should be encouraged and 
urged to "search the Scriptures," and to take the 
Bible as the man of his counsel. 

A certain young man in the West, who had pro- 
fessed a hope, was asked by a minister if he had not 
made up his mind to join a church. 

" No, sir," said he. 

4 'But have you not been trying to find out your 
duty in reference to it ? " asked the minister. 

"Yes, sir," said he; "I asked brother B 's 

opinion, and he thought his church was the right 

one. I asked brother H , and he thought B 

was wrong, ' For,' said he, ' my church is the right 
one ; ' and I asked brother E — — , and he said that 
those other brethren were both mistaken, and he 
tried to show me that his church was the right one — 
and I can't decide." 

" Was not Deacon M over to see you to-day? " 

asked the minister. 

"Yes, sir." 

"What did he advise you?" 

"He urged me to study the Bible on the subject." 

"That," said the minister, "was the best and 
wisest counsel of all, and I do hope that you may 
4 



74 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

follow it. Remember that men may be mistaken, 
but the Bible cannot be. ' Search the Scriptures, for 
in them ye think ye have eternal life, and they are 
they which testify of me.' " 

The convert took the deacon's advice, and in due 
time had a mind of his own, and knew what to do. 
This is the course I recommend to my brethren. 
Point the convert to the Bible ; let it be first and 
last, and we shall have less heterodoxy as the result. 
Too much, however, cannot be said to the inquirer 
upon the importance of reading the Bible with a 
prayerful spirit, and an unbiased mind. 

"HOW READBST THOU?" 

Luke x : 26. 

'Tis one thing, now, to read the Bible through, 
And another thing to read, to learn, and do : 
'Tis one thing now to read it with delight, 
And quite another thing to read it right. 
Some read it with design to learn to read, 
But to the subject pay but little heed ; 
Some read it aa their duty once a week, 
But no instruction from the Bible seek ; 
Whilst others read it with but little care, 
With no regard to how they read, nor where 1 
Some read it as a history, to know 

slow people lived three thousand years ago 

Some read to bring themselves into repute, 

Jy showing others how they can dispute ; 

vVhilst others read because their neighbors do, 

To see how long 'twill take to read it through. 

Some read it for the wonders that are there, 

tlow David killed a lion and a bear ; 

Whilst others read, or rather in it look, 
Because, perhaps, they have no other book. 



" HOW READEST THOU ? " 75 

Some read the blessed Book, they don't know why, 
It somehow happens in the way to lie ; 
"Whilst others read it with uncommon care, 
But all to find some contradictions there ! 
Some read as though it did not speak to them, 
But to the people at Jerusalem 1 
One reads it as a book of mysteries, 
And won't believe the very thing he sees ; 
One reads with father's specks upon his head, 
And sees the thing just as his father said : 
Another reads through Campbell or through Scott, 
And thinks it means exactly what they thought. 
Whilst others read the Book through H. Ballou, 
And if it cross his track, it can't be true. 
Some read to prove a pre-adopted creed — 
Thus understand but little what they read ; 
For every passage in the Book they bend, 
To make it suit that all-important end I 
Some people read, as I have often thought, 
To teach the Book, instead of being taught I 
And some there are who read it out of apite — 
I fear there are but few who read it right. 
So many people, in these latter days, 
Have read the Bible in so many ways, 
That few can tell which system is the best, 
For every party contradicts the rest ! 



CHAPTEB VIII. 



COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE — -LEARNING THE DRILL IN 
GOD'S ARMY. 



You may think, dear reader, from the heading of 
this chapter, that you will get a little romance. 
Well, this brings us to the romantic period of life ; 
but whether my matrimonial conquest would afford 
grounds for a novel by Charles Dickens, you may 
judge. I hope, however, that you do not read ro- 
mances; and, above all, I hope that if you are a 
professor, you do not take that trashy sheet called 
the " New York Ledger." I have to my sorrow seen 
it in some instances in the families of professors, and 
if you read it, or have it about you, or any of those 
yellow-covered novels, or any fictitious stuff of that 
character, I hope you are ashamed of it, and very 
sorry for it, for you have promised better things. 

The preliminaries of our marriage were few, and 
Mie account will be short. I did not intend to marry, 
jX least not so soon; but — I always insisted that it 
was Sister Pickard's fault, and yet she blames me for 

it all. While teaching school in county, Iowa, 

in the winter of 1843, she was one of my scholars. 
In autobiographies the author usually comes out 
successful ; but I must confess that in this school I 
was thoroughly beaten by one of my own scholars. 



COURTSHIP AND MARRIAGE. 77 

There were two or three gleeful, mischievous 
young women, including Miss More, who, though 
they made fair progress in study, were, as I thought, 
too full of mischief. Being but a young man, I felt 
a delicacy in correcting them, and I was put to my 
wits' end as to how I should keep them under proper 
command. After I thought I had shown sufficient 
toleration, I gave them a severe lecture, in which I 
told them that if they expected to still attend the 
school, they must be more sober — otherwise I would 
prefer that they stayed at home. At this they took 
offence, and all left the school. In a few days, how- 
ever, Miss More returned, as I supposed repentant, 
took her place, and remained through the term. 

It was not long until I saw many elements in her 
character that I liked. She seemed so teachable and 
happy, that I began to feel a partiality for her. In 
the mean time she became a Christian, and I thought 
she was one of the best scholars I ever had. Finally, 
I don't know how it came, but somehow, almost 
unconsciously, a strong attachment grew up between 
us. Suffice it to say that preliminaries were arranged, 
and on the 3d of August, 1843, about two months 
after our baptism, we were married by the Rev. S. 
L , the man who baptized us both. 

This step, as well as that of my baptism, was a 
grave offence* in the eyes of the Quaker church. 
According to its rules, by getting married outside of 
the church or without its consent, I, like Esau of 
old, forfeited my birthright.* But love, hazards all, 

* G-en. xxv : 33. 



78 ATTTOBIOGKAPHY 01 A PIONEEK. 

and the die was cast. I was so happy in my choice, 
however, that I did not nor have I found occasion, 
like Esau, to seek with tears a place for repentance. 

"We stopped at my .wife's father's until we could 
drum up a few things for house-keeping. In a few 
weeks we succeeded in this, and rented a cahin ah out 
five miles distant, where I had taken another school 
and moved in. Having hut one "bed we thought it 
necessary to have an extra one for company. To 
meet this demand I "bought material for a straw 
tick, which Mrs. Pickard made up and we filled with 
straw. I then "built a bedstead in one corner of the 
room, by boring holes in the logs and driving in 
timbers to form a support. As a substitute for a 
bed-cord we used boards, and soon had a bed. Thus 
we were established in life, and lived right ahead. 
In those days we knew nothing of such fine wedding 
tours as are often taken by the newly married in 
these more improved times, but I believe that among 
the cabins and wild prairies, as Col. Crockett said, 
"we used to love as hard as any people in the 
world." Many are the pleasant hours I have spent 
while living in a log cabin. 

We were now living about twenty-five miles from 
the Quaker church. I expected they would disci- 
pline me, but they deferred it for nearly a year. A 
committee of " Friends " was then sent to see me on 
the subject. 

They informed me that the requirements were, 
that I should confess that I was sorry for having 
married out of the church contrary to its discipline ; 



LEARNING THE DRILL IN GOD'S ARMY. 79 

and secondly, that I should make the same confes- 
sion for having joined another religious society. 

We had quite a lengthy controversy. I urged 
that I had violated no law of the land, nor of God 
or the Bible. To this they agreed, but said, " Thee 
knowest thee hast violated the discipline, and thee 
knowest that every church must have a discipline;" 
but I could not feel sorry. 

They visited and labored with me several times, 
to reclaim me from what they thought was the error 
of my ways, but all to no purpose ; and in about a 
year from the time of their first visit they gave it up, 
and threw me overboard. I have always, however, 
regarded their efforts to reclaim me as very Christian- 
like and commendable, and I suppose I ever shall 
feel great respect for the Quaker people. 

Though I had now become enlisted as a Christian, I 
soon found that it was no small matter to learn the 
drill in God's army. 

Reader, are you a feeble Christian ? Do you dread 
the cross of your Master ? If so, I know well how 
you feel. I would sympathize with you and offer 
words of encouragement. It may be of some benefit 
to you to hear of my humble experience in learning 
the drill in God's army. "When Sister Pickard and 
I began house-keeping, I had never made a vocal 
prayer in a family or any other place, though I had 
been a professor several months. I had often felt it 
my duty, but shrank from it. I did not receive such 
encouragement in that matter as most new converts 
do now ; there were but few Christians around me, 
and as the duty was not urged upon me I had ex- 



80 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

oused myself with praying in secret ; but now that I 
was the head of a family I felt strongly condemned in 
the neglect of a family altar. You know, perhaps, 
that the Bible threatens those families that call not 
upon God. " Pour out thy fury upon the heathen 
that know thee not, and upon the families that call 
not on thy name : for they have eaten up Jacob and 
devoured him, and consumed him, and have made his 
habitation desolate." Such are the words of inspira- 
tion, and it is a solemn matter for Christians to 
neglect family prayer. 

It seemed to me that I never could bear such a 
cross, and I deferred it from time to time, but the 
longer I neglected it the greater did the task appear. 
Cross-shunning Christian, is it not the same with 
you ? I tried hard to think up excuses, such as want 
of time — incapacity — I would pray more in secret; 
but it was no use. I saw clearly that my neglect 
was bringing coldness and dearth upon my soul. 
The excuse to which I clung the longest was, that I 
thought I could not pray ; but this did not ease my 
conscience. 

After some weeks of inward conflict, in which I 
lost much peace, I one day determined that when 
that night came I would pray in my family, though 
earth and hell should mock me. "Yes," thought I, 
" I will do it if it kills me." As soon as my mind 
yielded to do the duty, my distress about the matter 
was gone, and I was filled with such peace as I had 
not enjoyed for many a day. I longed for night to 
come that I might pay my vow unto the Lord. 



ELECTED CHUKCH CLEEK. 81 

When night did come it seemed ordered that 
Satan should have another trial at me, and that my 
resolution should he put to the severest test. A 
very joking, fun-loving young man came that even- 
ing to spend the night with us. I thought I would 
rather have prayed in the presence of any other per- 
son on earth, but I stood firm to my vow. I read the 
Scriptures and prayed. I was so confused I never 
knew what I said in my prayer ; I supposed it was 
a very poor, stammering one, but I afterward felt 
peaceful and happy. After this the cross grew 
lighter, and much of the time the duty seemed light 
and pleasant. I counsel all halting Christians to 
take the same course, believing that if they do they 
will obtain the same victory ; for, as says a poet, 

11 Satan trembles when he sees 
The weakest saint upon his knees." 

I now lived happily and pleasantly for some months, 
being in fellowship with my brothers and sisters, en- 
joying the comforts of religion, feeling at peace with 
God and all mankind. 

" Not a cloud did arise 
To darken my skies." 

The church with which I was connected was a 
young and feeble interest, and before I had belonged 
one year, the members elected me church clerk. 
So far as I know, I filled the office with approval. 

Elder Elmore, our pastor, would come around 

once in four weeks and preach to our little band. 

Frequently before preaching he would call upon 

some of the members to pray. I loved to hear the 
4* 



82 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

brethren pray, and enjoyed the meetings very much, 
bnt the pastor began to urge me to take up the cross 
also, and pray in the congregation. I told him that 
there were other brethren who could pray well, and 
he must call on them ; " I have not the gift," said I, 
" and can't do it." He urged that I had the gift, if 
I would only improve it — that! could pray in public, 
and that I should. He insisted that as I was now 
an officer in the church the people expected it of me. 
I felt it my duty, but hesitated; yet he urged it upon 
me at different times, until I resolved to attempt it. 
I concluded, however, that I should never try to 
pray extempore, for I thought if I did I should make 
such a ludicrous blunder that I would mortify myself 
and shame the cause. So I sat down and wrote out 
a prayer — looked it over carefully ; and thought it 
would sound very respectably. I then committed it 
to memory as thoroughly as possible, and, to make 
sure of it, I repeated it a number of times before the 
next meeting occurred. " Now," thought I, " if the 
Elder calls on me to pray I shall make a prayer that 
none of us will be ashamed of." 

It so happened that at the next meeting the house 
was crowded, and before I was expecting it the Elder 
spoke from the desk in a loud voice, saying, " Brother 
Pickard will lead in prayer." I felt as if I were 
thunderstruck ! Every nerve within me seemed to 
tremble. I fell upon my knees, thinking to say my 
prayer ; but to my utter confusion, I had suddenly 
forgotten it all ! I wished the floor might open and 
let me out of sight; but there was no escape, and I 
tried to pray from the spur of the moment. I 



PRAYING IN PUBLIC. 83 

scarcely knew what I prayed, but after the attempt I 
felt much relieved. I was so scared that I did not 
think of my written prayer for a number of days ; 
but the ice was thus broken, and after this I soon 
felt it a privilege to pray in public. I often felt 
much inward joy in the exercise, and realized that 
it was conducive to my growth in grace. 

There are many brethren and sisters who by 
reason of their refusal to pray in their families, or 
in religious meetings, are suffering leanness of soul. 
In conclusion, let me exhort all such who may read 
this book, to arouse from that condition and bear 
the cross at all hazards. I have now labored and 
traveled many years in Zion, and I do know that 
this Christless, prayerless way of living among many 
of the members, is bringing dearth and death upon 
the churches. 



CHAPTER IX 



CALL TO THE MINISTRY. 



In the summer of 1844, while at meeting one 
evening, I was strangely, as I thought, possessed 
with the idea that it was my duty to preach. The 
feeling was impressed upon me with great power, 
but I thought that such a calling was so contrary to 
my tastes and feelings, and so much above my 
capacity, that I endeavored to banish the idea. 
This I could not do. The feeling continued and 
increased in force. My mind almost constantly 
brooded upon the subject, and yet it was contrary 
to my desire — I did not wish to think of it. I tried 
to flatter myself that it was but a notion I had fallen 
into, and would finally pass off; but contrary to 
this, the feeling so grew upon me that I became 
distressed. 

I argued to myself that there were old and experi- 
enced ministers now preaching — they were loved, 
talented and useful ; that with my feeble gifts I 
never could stand in their places, and that it was 
folly to think of such a thing; but this was all to no 
purpose. I strove to keep my feelings a profound 
secret, lest I should be made a butt for ridicule. 
This, however, only seemed to increase my trouble, 
and as time wore on I began to murmur against 



CALL TO THE MINISTRY. 85 

God. My rebellious heart urged that God was 
chastening me uselessly in pressing such troubles 
upon me, and thus rendering me miserable ; while 
by talent, temperament, and inclination I was alto- 
gether unfit for such a calling. When my mind 
rebelled against the Lord I finally lost the comforts 
of religion, and became most wretched. 

One day, while grieving over my troubles, I 
received the startling intelligence that my beloved 
pastor and friend, Elder Elmore, was dead ! Him- 
self and wife lived about eight miles distant from 
our place, and we had not known of any sickness in 
his family until I heard of his death. In much 
sadness we went to attend his funeral, and on our 
arrival we learned, to our astonishment, that his 
wife, whom we had hoped to comfort, had died a few 
hours after her husband. They had died suddenly, 
of congestive chills, which were then prevalent, and 
the remains of both were in the house, prepared for the 
tomb. This was sad news to our little cnurch, for 
they were a father and mother in Israel, and Brother 
Elmore was a guide and counselor for all. 

We buried this faithful pair side by side in the 
same grave, and many were the tears shed on that 
mournful occasion. While I stood looking upon 
the process of burial, my mind was wrapt in thought 
upon the strangeness of the providence that had cut 
down this faithful servant of God in the midst of his 
usefulness. Thought I, " he was a man of piety and 
talent, and was really more useful to society than 
any other person in the country ; yet he is taken, 
while I, and many others of little use, are spared. 



86 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Why was not I taken and he left in the world to do 
good ?" While thus musing, my attention was 
abruptly called, and my soul startled, at what seemed 
to me a voice from heaven, exclaiming; " He is 
dead ! jSTow will you preach ?" These words 
seemed to me to be spoken so loud that I fancied 
that every one present must have heard them. I 
went home from the grave much excited in feelings, 
and somewhat alarmed. I thought myself the most 
unhappy of mortals, because I could have no peace 
on earth or be let alone from heaven. I felt, how- 
ever, that I could not yield, and in a few days the 
exciting effects of this occurrence left me. 

I had exhorted two or three times in meeting, at 
the urgent request of the pastor, and had enjoyed 
tolerable liberty. Now that the pastor was dead the 
brethren urged me more than ever to publicly talk 
to the people. I attempted it once or twice, but 
finding that the exercise strengthened my convic- 
tions and revived my troubles about preaching, I 
afterwards firmly refused. Moreover, from some 
cause, the brethren began to think I ought to take a 
license to preach, and they pressed the subject upon 
me. With this I finally became so annoyed and pro- 
voked that I disliked to be in their company. In 
one instance, while at meeting, I saw that they were 
expecting me to exhort, and to avoid it I left the 
meeting and went home, leaving my wife behind 
'me. I was ashamed of my conduct, yet I felt so 
crabbed and hateful that I could not help it. It 
seemed as though the devil possessed me. I wofully 
backslid — neglected the family altar, and became 



A CHRISTIAN SPIRIT. 87 

as sensitive and passionate as a fooL Much of my 
time I was so morose ami sullen that I could scarcely 
treat any one decently. 

About this time a Brother T., a young man, com- 
menced boarding in my family. He was a kind 
Christian, and one of my warmest friends. One day 
he said to me, " Pickard, what's the matter with 
you lately, that you look and act so strangely ?" He 
evidently spoke with friendly feelings, but I in- 
stantly became enraged, and heaped upon him a 
tirade of abuse ! He took all in a meek, Christian 
spirit, but I saw that his feelings were hurt. I was 
sorry and self-condemned in am instant for what I 
had done, but I was too obstinate to show repent- 
ance. I noticed that he went to his room alone. As 
I passed by his door, which had swung slightly ajar, 
I listened, and heard him, in a suppressed voice, 
praying for me. 

This circumstance acted powerfully upon my 
spirit. I hastened. away with feelings of the keenest 
remorse, and lamented my folly in bitterness of soul. 
I heartily despised myself for what I had done, and 
felt that I was deserving of all the reproaches that 
could be heaped upon me. 

I have always regarded the conduct of this young 
mail as exhibiting some of the highest Christian 
graces — meekness, forbearance, and prayerfulness. 
I recommend his example for the imitation of all 
Christians in times of similar trial. Nothing 1 so 
effectually confuses and defeats the tempter as to 
show him the meek, forbearing spirit, and take the 



88 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Saviour's way of heaping " coals of fire " upon the 
heads of offenders.* 

One thing that had much influence on me against 
being a minister was, that while I was poor, having 
forfeited my birthright by my marriage and by join- 
ing the Baptist church, my brothers, who were now 
married, had good farms and a fair start in life; and I 
had formed the determination to accumulate property 
enough to claim position with them. To give up 
the earthly prospects which seemed to open before 
me, and consent to the life of poverty consequent 
upon the calling, and, worst of all, to have my 
family in poverty with me, and oftentimes in want, 
seemed to me more than I could possibly endure. 

The force of such thoughts were far greater then 
than they would be now, for in those days a preacher 
was expected to labor abundantly with no remunera- 
tion. But these excuses gave no relief to my mind. 
During this long season of rebellion I was so tor- 
mented that I was often troubled with dreams. 

One night I dreamed that hell was open before 
me, and that I stood upon its brink. A voice said 
unto me, " Look I" I thought I looked, and saw a 
wide expanse. Dark clouds of smoke and offensive 
vapors hovered over it, amidst which there flashed 
most fearful lightnings. In every direction were 
huge volcanoes, which were incessantly bursting and 
heaving up immense volumes of melted lava. Here 
and there were frightful precipices, immense black 
rocks, and yawning chasms. Beneath all were deep 
basins, in which rolled the surges of liquid fire. In 

* Luke vi : 21 ; Rom. xii : 20. 






EFFECTS OF HIS BREAM. 89 

these I saw countless fiends and lost spirits, which 
were yelling and screaming, and clutching each other 
in wild agony, while they were dashed about upon 
the fiery billows, or were overwhelmed in the roaring 
surge ; while, ever and anon deep, fearful thunders 
joined the horrid chorus, and shook the dreadful 
region from center to circumference. I thought 
that while I gazed upon the hideous scene my knees 
smote together, and my soul and body were paralyzed 
with fear. Then the voice spoke again, saying, 
"Will you preach ok take your portion here ?" 
I exclaimed, " Oh, my Lord ! I will preach, or do 
anything, rather than be lost in this place of damna- 
tion." At this another frightful thundering burst 
upon the air, making the region to tremble again, 
and I awoke. 

On first recovering my senses, I was much con- 
cerned and affected by what had occurred. But I 
soon argued to myself that it was simply a feverish 
dream, which had resulted from a disordered fancy, 
and therefore amounted to nothing, and I still felt 
as determined as ever that I would not preach. 

I yet had darkness of spirit and hardness of heart, 
and I felt an obstinate bitterness toward God for 
thus afflicting me in my poverty, when I was first 
making a start hi life, while there were many others 
who, I thought, were better prepared for the min- 
istry, and could enter it with less sacrifice. 

Soon after my frightful dream I had anothei, 
which was its opposite. I dreamed that I stood 
upon the verge of heaven, apparently not more than 
an arm's length from the point of admittance, and I 



90 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

looked and saw its glories. It appeared to me far 
more beautiful than I had ever been able to con- 
ceive. Landscapes of the most rapturous beauty 
and variety stretched out in every direction, clothed 
in verdure of the finest tints, bearing delicious fruits, 
and watered by crystal streams which flowed to the 
river of life. Upon the banks of the river stood the 
tree of life, towering up in unspeakable greatness 
and beauty. The whole scene was made resplen- 
dent by the great white throne, from which pro- 
ceeded light of an unearthly glory, which seemed to 
increase the otherwise enchanting beauty of every 
thing my eyes beheld. The throne was far whiter 
than marble, and seemed to be a living element 
shining by its own will. Upon it sat the Saviour, 
presenting an appearance of inconceivable magnifi- 
cence. Companies of shining angels and redeemed 
ones, arrayed in rich garments, were floating upon 
the gentle zephyrs or walking amid the bowers. 

"Withal, music of unearthly sweetness, now rolling 
up to a pitch sublimely grand, then dying down to 
delicious softness, fell upon my ear. But words 
would fail to tell the delights that opened to my 
view. I thought I would gladly give all the worlds 
in the universe, if I owned them, to enter in at once 
and there make my final home. 

I looked longingly upon the scene and wept, when 
a voice said to me, " This is the home of the righte- 
ous. "Will you preach and enter here, or will 
you refuse and be shut out ?" I thought my tears 
flowed afresh as I exclaimed, " Lord ! I will preach, 
or do anything, that I may not miss of heaven." I 



REFUSES TO ATTEND CHURCH MEETINGS. 91 

thought that, somehow, I then received the assu- 
rance that I should be admitted when my task on 
earth was done, and I awoke, shouting with such 
ecstacy that I awakened all in the house. 

When I saw that it was a dream, I felt very sad 
and disappointed, and soon relapsed into my former 
obstinacy. I had a number of dreams of a similar 
character, but these things did not reconcile me to 
the will of God. 

By my backsliding I had for some time refused 
to attend our Sabbath meetings and prayer meet- 
ings, yet I remained clerk of the church, and had 
attended regularly the monthly meetings of business ; 
but now I refused to attend even these. 

One church-meeting day my wife inquired, "Are 
you going to meeting to-day ?" I sullenly replied, 
"No." She said no more, and went alone. I sought 
something to busy myself, and soon found business in 
chasing hogs out of the field. Backsliders always have 
plenty of business on church-meeting days. Cove- 
nant-breaker, haven't you noticed that fact ? "Well, 
it might be a mercy to you if, every time you tried 
to steal half a day from God, when you ought to 
be at church meeting, you would have an experience 
like the one I am going to relate. 

While I was chasing the hogs, every thing seemed 
combined to provoke me. The hogs were contrary, 
and the dogs were lazy, and I could do nothing with 
either. My anger became so aroused that I tried to 
kill both dogs and hogs. While chasing them at 
the top of my speed, with my soul boiling with rage, 
I suddenly saw, or thought I saw, an open grave, 



92 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

not more than two steps before me ! A coffin was 
suspended over it, and a few feet above it. I stopped 
instantly, and thought I had very nearly stepped 
into the grave. When, with excited feelings, I had 
viewed for a moment this appalling vision, a voice 
said, " Go no farther or you are dead, and this is 
your grave." For an instant I stood riveted to the 
spot, when the voice said again, seemingly as loud 
as thunder, "You are needed at church!" I 
wheeled round instantly, and fled for the church in 
the utmost fright. Before I got to the meeting, it 
being about half a mile distant, I slackened my 
speed, and began to think that what I had seen was 
only visionary, and the result of my previous excite- 
ment, and that it was cowardly in me to be scared 
to meeting. Moreover, I was dressed in very ragged 
clothes, which made me ashamed to enter the as- 
sembly. While thus reasoning, I hesitated, halted, 
and finally turned back for home. I had gone but 
a few paces in that direction, when the voice came 
louder than before, saying again, " You are needed 
at church !" I then ran for the church with all my 
power, and did not stop until I entered the door. 
Opportunity was offered to speak, and I made part 
of a confession ; but did not tell the great trouble 
which was upon my heart, and I obtained no relief. 
I continued two weeks more in the greatest 
trouble. My mind was much distressed through 
the day, and often affrighted in dreams of the night. 
I certainly felt the full force of Paul's expression 
" Woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel !"* I 

* 1 Cor. ix : 16. 



DES MOINES CHURCH. 93 

was finally induced, by the earnest solicitations of 
my wife and friends, to attend a regular meeting of 
the Des Moines church, about six miles from our 
place. 

, On coming near the church, I felt such a dislike 
to enter it that I left the company and went to the 
woods, where I roamed about all day, and went 
without dinner. We were to have night meeting. 
As it grew dark, I went into the church slyly, and 
took a back seat, not wishing to speak to any one, 
for, just as David said, " The pains of hell gat hold 
upon me."* I was in the deepest misery, and feared 
that I should not live to see another day. The long 
torments of mind had so affected me that I had lost 
my appetite, and become weak, lean, and peevish. 
The preacher commenced singing, 

1 ' Oh when shall I see Jesus, 
And reign with him above. 1 ' 

" Alas !" thought I, " I shall never see him, I fear. I 
am upon the brink of hell, and if I do not obey him 
soon, I shall be lost forever!" I saw my folly in 
resisting, and yielded inwardly to the Lord, saying, 
" I will preach, though I suffer poverty, humiliation, 
shame, or death itself. ' Lord forgive my rebellion, 
and fit me for thy work !" When I had thus fully 
yielded, sweet peace flowed into my soul, such as .1 
had been a stranger to for many long weeks. I was 
filled with holy ecstacy, and longed to begin the 
work of preaching, and fulfill my vow. My feel- 
ings were entirely new and surprising to myself. I 

* Psalm cxvi : 3. 



94 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

wanted to commence warning sinners that moment ! 
Though I once thought that to he a minister was to 
live the most pitiable life, I now felt that it was the 
most exalted position a mortal could enjoy, and a 
calling that an angel might covet. Though I thought 
my talent small, I felt that God knew all about me, 
and could best decide as to my adaptation to the 
work, and I felt ready to obey, and leave the result 
with him. 

The minister's text was, " I have found no fault 
in this man."* This was the testimony of Pilate 
concerning Jesus. As soon as he had finished his 
discourse, I went to the front of the desk, without 
waiting for an invitation, and poured forth the feelings 
of my overflowing soul with such liberty as I never 
before enj oyed. The Holy Spirit fell upon the congre- 
gation, the brethren rejoiced and wept for joy, and 
five or six ungodly sinners arose for prayers. A re- 
vival of religion thus commenced, which resulted in a 
general awakening throughout the community, and 
the conversion of a goodly number of souls. The 
joys of that meeting I shall never forget; it seemed 
that heaven and earth were met together. I con- 
tinued to exhort with much liberty throughout this 
entire revival season. 

I knew not what opportunities for doing good 
would open before me, but I now resolved to cast 
myself loose from the world as much as possible, 
and hold myself in readiness for any work Provi- 
dence might assign me. This course I have at- 

* Luke Trxiji : 14. 



A WAKNING TO YOUNG MEN. 95 

tempted to follow, though with many missteps, until 
this day. 

In respect to the dreams, visions, and voices of 
which I have spoken, I should not be misunderstood. 
As to whether they were real, and came from God, 
or from natural causes, I do not here venture an 
opinion. I speak of them simply as circumstances 
connected with my call to the ministry. As to their 
reality, each who reads this account of them must 
judge for himself. Of this much I am certain, they 
seemed real to me, and hastened my decision on the 
question of preaching. 

I will close this chapter with a word of warning 
to young men who truly feel called to the min- 
istry. If you are impressed with an intelligent 
conviction that it is the will of God that you 
should labor in the ministry, as you value your 
soul's peace do not dare to fight against him — 
the contest will be unequal. Do not attempt to run 
from him, as Jonah did — the race will be vain, and 
judgment will overtake you. Though you flee to 
the uttermost parts of the earth, or build your nest 
in the stars, God is there! Doing the duties the 
Spirit impresses upon you is the . only way of 
comfort. 

Brother M , an intimate acquaintance of mine, 

and a young man of promise, felt deeply impressed 
that he ought to enter the work. Dreading its 
crosses and trials, he went to another State, several 
hundred miles distant, hoping that by getting away 
from the influence of his Christian friends for a time, 
his concern on the subject would leave him. But 



96 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

it only increased ; and he vowed to the Lord that if 
he would only spare him to return to his friends in 
Iowa, he would ohey the call. He did return in 
safety, hut in a short time he took the gold fever, 
which was raging in 1849, and against the earnest 
solicitations of his friends, he started for California. 
I pleaded hard with him to remain and commence his 
work, hut he urged that he was poor, and could do 
more good when he got means ; and, "besides, he 
had no library or outfit for the ministry, and no way 
of supporting himself in it, until he first raised the 
means to pay his way. 

He had some fears about breaking his vows, but 
persuasion was of no avail. When I bade him fare- 
well, I told him that I never expected to see him 
again, because he was trying to run away from God. 
At this he wept, but was resolved. He got along 
well until he was within thirty miles of Salt Lake. 
There he anda comrade climbed a mountain to view 
the country. He was apparently in good health, 
and before he left the top of the mountain he sang : 

" Come let us anew, 
Our journey pursue," etc. 

He then kneeled down and prayed God to prosper 
him in his errand, and on his journey home, and 
vowed anew, that if the Lord would permit him to 
return in prosperity and safety, he would then preach 
the gospel. He went from the mountain down to 
the camp, took the cholera that night, and died upon 
the spot ! It is far better that we trust and obey. 



CHAPTER X. 

COMMENCES TRAVELING — ELDER MORE — MEETING AT 

THE " DEVIL'S RIDGE" DREADFUL DEATH OF A 

SINNER RAISING A SKELETON. 

Soon after the events of the preceding chapter, I 
commenced traveling with Elder James More, my 
spiritual father. Our plan was to travel and hold 
meetings through the fall and winter seasons, and 
each till a small farm through the summer, to sup- 
port our families. The demands of the people, in a 
literary point of view, were less exacting then than in 
these days. There were no colleges then in the "West, 
nor education societies to encourage and help can- 
didates for the ministry, as there are now. There 
were no well-educated ministers, except the very few 
who came from the East. The church could not wait 
until colleges were built, and men were thoroughly 
fitted and polished for the ministry. Hence the 
Spirit took men from the plow, and from the various 
avocations of life, and thrust them forth. We pur- 
sued our theological studies in Brush College. 

What may now he learned from hooks, we were 
compelled to learn by experience, at much greater 
cost, or go unlearued. What we lacked in scholastic 
attainments we tried to atone for by experimental 
knowledge and practical tact. Though our clothes 
5 



98 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

were coarse and our appearance rough, and though 
our purses and general outfit were poor — our libraries 
usually consisting of little more than a Bible and 
hymn book — we were well received by the people, 
and regarded as the messengers of God. "When I be- 
gan to travel, though my education was what would 
now be considered quite limited, it was, perhaps, 
much better than that of most of the preachers in 
Iowa at that time. 

Elder James More became my professor of the- 
ology and general instructor. He knew little of 
high schools and colleges, such as have since been 
reared upon those foundations he helped to lay as 
a pioneer minister ; but he had much native talent, 
was deeply pious, and well acquainted with the 
tricks of the adversary. He was well versed in the 
Scriptures, and when warmed up with holy fire, he 
was gifted in speech and sometimes eloquent. 

Many were the valuable lessons and wise counsels 
I received from that good man, as we journeyed and 
labored together. I often recognized the wisdom of 
the Saviour in originally sending forth his disciples 
" two and two," we were so much comfort and en- 
couragement to each other. At first Brother More 
would have me exhort after he had preached ; but 
gradually, as my talents improved, he pressed me 
into the pulpit, until we finally adopted the habit of 
preaching and exhorting alternately. 

The first fall and winter, we held a number of 
revival meetings, were permitted to witness a goodly 
number of conversions, and I was much encouraged 
in the great and good work. Before the season of 



COMMENCES TRAVELING. 99 

our winter campaign closed, however, my family 
began to be in want, for I was poor in this world's 
goods, being only a renter, and when I left them I 
could make but slight provision for their wants. 
Though we met with good success, and saw scores 
of souls converted during our tour, you need not 
suppose, reader, that we were successful in getting 
temporal remuneration for it ; for all our labor and 
travel that winter we did not receive a single cent ! 
We carried on the warfare against Satan's kingdom 
at our own charges. The work then had to be done 
on such terms or be left undone. We did not get 
supplied with clothing — not even with a pair of 
socks. When we ended the tour, my clothes were 
well worn, and I was poorly clad. In my cabin, 
want was peeping in at every crevice. But I had 
counted the cost, and was not disappointed ; pioneer 
preachers did not usually have any better fare, and 
we both rejoiced that we were counted worthy to 
endure these things for Christ's sake. 

There were of course causes for this. In the first 
place, Iowa was then only a territory ; and there were 
but few Baptists, or Christians of any order, within 
its bounds. "When I began to preach there was but 
one Baptist association in the whole territory of 
Iowa. It was called the Des Moines Association, and 
embraced the whole territory. The entire body did 
not number one hundred members. 

The churches were young and feeble, and able to 
do but little for the support of the gospel, and the 
unconverted part of the people were of the pioneer 
or squatter class, who knew but little of the wants 



100 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

of a minister, and cared less. But the greatest cause 
of our receiving nothing was, that the few Baptists 
who then composed the churches were generally 
Southern people of the anti-mission stamp, and would 
not pay a preacher anything if they could. They 
" didn't think a preacher ought to preach for money." 
They " thought he ought to preach for the good of the 
cause," and were very jealous if one would hint that 
he wanted money, " because it would hurt the cause 
for people to think that that was what he wanted." 
They put this in the mouths of outsiders also, and 
we, of course, rather than "hurt the cause," labored 
for them at our own expense, and usually went home 
worn and ragged, to look after our needy families. 
God bless the do-nothing, anti-mission Baptists ! I 
hope that most of them are now in heaven — and I 
wish the rest were there, for they are of little use on 
earth. By these things, reader, you may see what it 
cost, in those days, to forsake our business and enter 
the ministry. 

In the spring of 1844, when I resumed my work 
upon the farm, times were very hard. I sold corn 
at ten cents a bushel, wheat at from twenty-five to 
thirty-seven cents, heavy pork at one dollar and fifty 
cents, and other products in proportion. Postage on 
letters was twenty-five cents. I have often had to let 
a letter lie in the ofiice some time before I could get 
money enough to pay the postage. The people in 
Iowa then lived very poorly, and knew little of the 
many comforts enjoyed in the same country to-day. 
I will here give one example to show the privations 
of the early settlers. Mr. G. M moved to Iowa, 



COMMENCES TRAVELING. 101 

in what is now called Lee county, in the spring. 
ISTot being able to erect a good cabin and raise a 
crop, he built a booth, about twelve by sixteen feet. 
It was covered with bark, and the front was left 
,open. It contained but one room, and it was used 
for kitchen, parlor, dining-hall, and bed-room. Here 
he lived with his family through storm and sunshine 
until late in the fall, when, having secured his crops, 
he built a rude cabin. His nearest mill was on Spoon 
Eiver, Illinois, distant about seventy miles. In the 
following winter he went there with his ox team to 
mill ; but on his arrival the mill was ice-bound, and 
he was compelled to leave his grist and return empty. 
During the three months following, the family lived 
upon buckwheat, ground in a coffee mill, with milk 
and wild honey, as their only subsistence. Their 
few neighbors were generally in the same condition, 
and were unable to help each other. 

As soon as my crops were gathered in the fall, I 
started again in company with my old colleague, 
Elder More, on another revival tour. Among the 
places where we held meetings this winter was one 
called " The Devil's Ridge," a name given to the 
settlement by Methodist ministers, on account of its 
hardness and wickedness. It bordered upon the 
grounds of the notorious Abner Kneeland, who is 
extensively known as having labored very earnestly 
to establish infidelity in Iowa and Missouri. 

"We had no special inducement to hold meeting 
there, but seeing the exceeding wickedness of the 
place, we felt moved to warn the people of their sins, 
and make an attempt for the honor of our God. 



102 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

We found a Baptist couple newly settled there, and 
they tendered us the use of their house for holding 
meetings. We made the announcement all over the 
neighborhood, that our meeting would commence 
on Thursday night; but not a soul came. We 
preached and exhorted to the man of the house and 
his wife the best we could, and announced meetings 
for several nights in succession, to be accompanied 
by prayer-meeting every morning at nine o'clock. 

The second night there were two hearers added 
to our audience. At this rate the meeting continued 
through the week. On Saturday night another man 
and his wife were present. The case looked hope- 
less ; but we trusted in God for victory, and preached 
and prayed with all our hearts. On Sunday morn- 
ing, to our joy and surprise, the people came from 
every direction and filled the house to overflowing. 

That morning we began to pray at nine o'clock ; 
preaching was to begin at eleven o'clock, and before 
the hour there were many crowding about the door 
and windows, who could not get in. Brother More 
preached. He felt that much was pending, and his 
discourse was heart-searching and soul-awakening. 
To my joy, I soon saw tokens of mercy; and before 
the sermon was ended the crowd seemed to wave 
like a forest in the mighty wind. Many wept, some 
cried aloud for mercy, and others fell on the floor 
at full length, under the mighty power of God's 
truth. When they were invited forward for prayer, 
there seemed to be a general rush. Some who had 
previously fallen could not get there, and others fell 
on the way. Brother More and I prayed and couii- 



MEETING AT THE "DEVIL'S RIDGE." 103 

seled with them until a late hour, and such an intense 
religious interest I had never seen before. After hav- 
ing had one or two seasons of prayer, we seemed to 
be in a perfect Babel. Some were shouting lustily 
for joy in hope of salvation, while others were crying 
at the top of their voices for mercy. Thirty or forty 
souls professed conversion that night, and yet it was 
the first sermon that most of them had heard for 
years. A few days from that time we organized a 
Baptist church of about fifty members. This meet- 
ing encouraged me very much in the work, and 
increased my boldness in the faith. I clearly saw 
what God would do in answer to prayer, for I knew 
that this mighty work was to be attributed in but a 
small degree to human agencies. God had surely 
heard our prayers, and began to work on the people's 
hearts before they came to the meeting. 

A remarkable incident occurred at this meeting, in 
the case of a wicked young man. He had attended 
several evenings, and was deeply convicted. I talked 
with him on the subject of religion, but could not 
prevail upon him to submit to God ; and though his 
mind was most severely wrought upon, he resisted 
the Spirit with most brutal obstinacy to the end. On 
the last night of the meeting, the devil seemed to 
possess him entirely. As soon as service closed he 
ran out, slamming the door, hallooing at the top of 
his voice, saying, " The Baptist distracted meeting 
is done, and now we will have a distracted meeting 
of our own ! " Then he commenced dancing, yell- 
ing, and mocking. That night he went home and 
to bed as usual, and in the morning waked up a 



104 AUTOBIOGKAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

raving maniac ; and thus literally fulfilled his own 
mocking declaration — "E~ow we will have a dis- 
tracted meeting of our own ! " He continued in this 
situation until his death, which occurred a few days 
after. In his ravings he would frequently exclaim 
in great distress, " Oh, that meeting ! that meeting ! ■" 
He died without hope ! Thus it is, as God has said, 
"He that being often reproved harden eth his neck, 
shall suddenly he destroyed, and that without rem- 
edy." * Five or six others who were under deep 
conviction at this meeting, and resisted God, died 
within six months of its close ; so common is it for 
judgment to follow mercy refused. 
* In the spring of 1846, I was again on my farm, 
preparing for a crop. God had given us two chil- 
dren, and though we were poor we enjoyed domestic 
peace and heavenly consolation, and I shall perhaps 
never be more happy in this world than I was then. 
While conducting my farming operations, I usually 
preached on Sabbaths in adjacent communities. I 
had but little time to sermonize, and I preached 
mostly as I found utterance in an extempore manner, 
upon such topics as most readily presented them- 
selves. Often in the pressure of my business I have 
been unable to find time to think about a sermon, 
until Sabbath, and then I was frequently compelled 
to hunt a text after I entered the desk, read it for 
a beginning, and trust to God and the inspiration of 
the occasion for a sermon. What studying I did 
was mostly done at night, commonly by the light of 

Prov. xxix : 1. 



RAISING A "SKELETON." 105 

a bark fire. My book of study was the Bible. It 
constituted the larger part of my library. This was 
not such a chance as one should have to become a 
workman, " rightly dividing the Word of truth ; " 
but it was the best I had, and I could do no better • 
yet God often blessed me and my hearers with 
happy spiritual emotions under this style of preach- 
ing. About this period of my ministry, I one day 
resolved to get up a regular good sermon. I thought 
that after I had preached so much in the scattered 
style, I would have it right for once. I took paper 
and pencil, and after a hard task I produced a 
" skeleton." I found it very difficult to get it near 
what I thought would be right ; but I found it much 
more difficult to preach it right. When I attempted 
to use it, it seemed so defective and confused that I 
became badly embarrassed, and made such a miser- 
able mess of it that I threw it away, and gave the peo- 
ple an exhortation. This for a long time discouraged 
me from any further efforts of the kind ; though I 
have since learned that it was chiefly owing to my 
want of time and practice in the preparation of ser- 
mons and the use of skeletons. Want of time for 
study has, in fact, been to me one of the greatest 
sources of embarrassment in my ministry, more espe- 
cially in the early part. This, I believe, is a common 
complaint of the ministry, and they not only com- 
plain of a want of time, but a want of books. 

Oh, that our brethren of the laity did but realize 
how much we feel the need of study to qualify us to 
preach with power! How often ministers are embar- 
rassed and distressed thereby, especially where they 



106 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

preach long to one congregation. A want of books, 
or means to get them, and time to read them, is a 
common reason why your pastors, ye churches ! 
" don't wear well," and have " so much sameness," 
that after a short stay your congregations "run 
down," and they are compelled to "resign." If 
you would see these things as we do, your pastors, 
would be better sustained, and their whole time 
would be given to the legitimate work of the minis- 
try. But so it is> that " he which soweth sparingly 
shall reap also sparinglyj"* Remember that it is 
contrary to Scripture to " muzzle the ox that tread- 
eth out the corn." f It is wrong, my brother, or my 
sister ^ to permit your pastor, if you can avoid it, to be 
entangled with secular cares. ""Who goeth a war- 
fare at any time at his own charges ? "Who planteth a 
vineyard and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who 
feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the 
flock? " " If we have sown unto you spiritual things, 
is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things ?" 
Remember that " even so hath the Lord ordained, 
that they which preach the gospel should live of the 
gospel." % 

Perhaps you say as you read this, " Oh, yes ; that's 
all true. I sympathize with our preacher and his 
family. I don't know but I ought to give him some- 
thing." But let me tell you that your pastor is not 
suffering for want of sympathy ; what he wants is 
justice. Pay him what you owe him — your pro- 
portion of his salary. He is not needy because peo- 

* 2 Cor. ix : 6. f 1 Cor. ix : 9. % 1 Cor. ix : 7-14. 



" JUSTICE." 107 

pie don't " give" him more, but because they do not' 
pay him his due ; he does not receive what he has 
richly earned. The one great boon the ministry 
asks of those for whom they labor, and to whom they 
preach, is justice. First give them that, and then 
'if you have any sympathy they will be thankful for 
it, but they cannot live on it ; and if you will give 
them any presents they will gratefully accept them 
as a mark of love and friendship, but not as paupers 
who live on the pities and charities of the world. 



CHAPTER XI. 

REMARKABLE MEETING IN LEE COUNTY — A DREAM — A 
RIOT — TWO MEN DRAG THEIR WIVES FROM THE ANX- 
IOUS SEAT — LIFE THREATENED — MIDIANITES — THE 
CONGREGATION PRAYS FOR SAFETY — AUTHOR'S ESCAPE 
— RIOTERS FALL UNDER THE POWER OF GOD — DREAM 
FULFILLED. 

Late in the fall of 1846, Brother More and I set out 
on our third revival campaign. "We journeyed on 
foot, not knowing where we should stop; but we 
felt that our commission, " Gro ye into all the world 
and preach the gospel to every creature,"* was a 
broad one, and did not fear of getting out of our 
field. It appeared, however, that Providence directed 

us to the neighborhood of Brother A , in Lee 

county, Iowa, where there were three or four Baptist 
families. They were rejoiced to see us; for preach- 
ers' visits, like those of angels, in that new country, 
were few and far between. 

We arrived late and were very weary with walking, 
but by the earnest solicitation of our host we agreed 
to preach that evening in his cabin. We soon had 
about thirty-five persons for a congregation, includ- 
ing the family of the house. But six of the hearers 

* Mark xvi : 15 



A DKEAM. 109 

were professors ; and as the audience was so small 
we thought the prospect was very dull, but I began to 
preach, taking for my text — " Come, for all things 
are now ready." After I had proceeded with my 
remarks for a few minutes, the Holy Spirit alighted 
down upon us in an unusual manner; my soul caught 
fire, the few professors present seemed to be electri- 
fied, and I was blessed with great liberty in preach- 
ing. It was really wondrous to see what solemn awe 
pervaded the company. At the close of the sermon 
I gave an opportunity for any person or persons 
present to ask the prayers of God's people by rising 
to their feet. To our joy, every unconverted soul in 
the room, twenty-nine in number, arose. After a 
season of prayer for their conversion, we appointed 
another meeting for nine o'clock the next morning. 
At a late hour, being very weary, we laid down to 
rest ; but our hearts were so light and happy, that it 
was near morning before we slept. We were re- 
joicing in the thought that the angel of the Lord, as 
when the servant of Abraham was in search of the 
bride,* went before us, as Isaiah said " to make ready 
a people for the Lord," and we felt that we had been 
directed by the Spirit. 

When I fell asleep I had a peculiar dream, which 
I will relate. I do not think I am inclined to be 
superstitious, for I don't believe much in whims ; but 
I have had a number of dreams in my ministerial 
experience, which were so impressive and so literally 
fulfilled, that I am almost compelled to believe that 

* Gen. xxiv : 7. 



110 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

there is something in them, though in rare instances, 
which cannot be accounted for by natural causes. 
" And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith 
God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh : 
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, 
and your young men shall see visions, and your old 
men shall dream dreams." * I think that those last 
days are that period of the world that began at Pen- 
tecost and will close at the Judgment. God's ser- 
vants of old had revelations in dreams of the night, 
and why may not we of the present day ? 

But I will leave this, question for others to discuss, 
and tell my dream. On this first night of my stay 
in the community, I dreamed that a great cloud 
gathered over the place, from which burst forth a 
furious storm. The thunders boomed in an awful 
manner, and the forests were swayed to and fro in 
the mighty winds. But, above all, the lightnings 
were most appalling; they struck in every direction, 
so that it seemed that nothing could escape them : 
they skinned or peeled every tree that I could see in 
the forest in any direction, from top to bottom, and 
the people were all terrified. The storm finally 
passed over ; the heavens were cleared, the stars 
shone forth beautifully bright, the fields were green 
and delightful, the birds sang sweetly, and all nature 
smiled. When I awoke the scene was still impressed 
upon my mind, though I thought it was but a dream. 
Yet the sequel will show that "it was not all a 
dream." 

* Acts ii : 17, and Joel ii : 28, 29. 



A RIOT. Ill 

At a late hour in the morning our .brother and 
host aroused us, saying, " It will soon he meeting 
time." We bestirred ourselves hastily, hut had only 
just finished our breakfast when the people began to 
come in for meeting. The news of the last night's 
doings had been circulated, and the crowd was now 
considerably increased. Every one who had attended 
in the evening was also present. I preached again ; 
and after this second sermon, every unconverted per- 
son in the house came to the anxious seat! This in- 
cluded all who had attended the previous night, and 
all those who were then present for the first time. 
"We had truly a Pentecostal time, praying for them ; 
and we continued the exercises of praying, singing, 
counseling, and praying again, until two o'clock in 
the afternoon. 

The meeting, from this, went on with some con- 
versions every night. In a short time the people 
assembled in such numbers that the crowd could not 
possibly get into the house, and every night, after 
the house was filled to its utmost capacity, scores of 
people would stand around the doors and windows 
outside. 

When reformation's fire was fairly under way, the 
devil, as he usually does on such occasions, got angry. 
He instigated certain lewd fellows of the baser sort 
to stir up the wicked people to mob us. We had 
preached very plainly, telling them boldly of their 
wickedness and corruption, and warning them that 
if they did not repent they might expect the judg- 
ments of the Almighty sooner or later to fall upon 
them. With this the scamps pretended to be in- 



112 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

suited, and Jiaving laid the plot, and supplied them- 
selves with clubs and jugs of devil's tea, they came 
on one night in a most tumultuous manner, using 
many oaths and curses, and making dreadful threats. 
Apprehending their design, we instantly closed the 
doors and windows. This appeared to increase their 
rage ; they rushed up to the door and about the win- 
dows like a pack of wild Indians. They yelled and 
screamed like fiends ; a regiment of catamounts 
could not have produced a more frightful jargon. 
They threatened to tear the house down upon our 
heads. At this the women and children screamed, 
and we had confusion inside and out. For a moment 
our chances looked dark and perilous ; but, thought 
I, God has sent us here to preach to these sinners, 
and we have done our duty as He has required ; most 
surely, if we ask it, He will deliver us from this 
drunken mob. I then quieted the congregation, and 
requested that all would kneel with us before God, 
and that each one would pray aloud unto the Lord, 
that he would have mercy upon those wicked men, 
defeat their purpose, and save their perishing souls. 
"We all kneeled, and such loud and earnest petitions 
as went up from that assembly within a few min- 
utes, I suppose the world has seldom heard. "When 
we arose from prayer, an aged woman exclaimed 
aloud, " I know that God will answer those prayers, 
for it seemed to me that I could see them go right 
up through the roof." 

The noise still continued outside, but from some 
cause, I never knew exactly what, they were quar- 
reling and fighting among themselves in such a 



A EIOT. 113 

manner that, in the new issue they had raised, we 
were for the time forgotten, and we attributed it to 
Divine Providence, with which we thought we had 
been favored in special answer to prayer. It forcibly 
reminded me of the defeat of the Midianites which 
occurred in the days of Gideon, by the direct inter- 
position of God.* I quieted the congregation, had 
them take their seats, and finished my sermon. On 
inviting the penitent forward for prayers, as usual 
after preaching, a couple of women, who were the 
wives of two of the principal rioters, came up, with 
others, and kneeled at the anxious seat. They were 
in great distress of soul, and pleaded most earnestly 
for divine mercy. One season of prayer had been 
offered for them, and we were just commencing 
another, when the door was forced, and their hus- 
bands rushed in from the outside with clubs in their 
hands, and in a brutal manner caught them from the 
anxious seat and commenced dragging them out of 
doors, threatening to kill them. 

AH was now terrible confusion. The poor women 
screamed for help. Some were shouting, " Stop 
them ! Stop them ! " others, " Knock them down I " 
Some were rushing forward, pell-mell, to the rescue, 
crying, "Hold! hold!" while the noise of the chil- 
dren and the dogs joined in the general uproar! 
But, in spite of all we could do, the women were 
dragged out of doors. They were scarcely out when 
a tremendous fight began between two of the men 
outside, and in less than one minute half a dozen or 

* Judges vii : 22. 



114 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

more joined the fray, and a number of broken noses 
and bloody faces was soon the result. 

We then closed our exercises in the house, think- 
ing that we would let the people get home as soon 
as possible, and make our own escape. As the 
crowd began to go out, we were told privately that 
several men stood by the door outside, with clubs in 
their hands, determined to kill us when we went out. 
Thinking it unsafe to remain, we retreated through 
the rear of the house, and, like the Saviour, hid our- 
selves and passed by.* 

Having concealed ourselves in the woods for some 
time, the mob thought we had left for other parts, 
and finally dispersed. "We then returned to our 
lodgings, and slept in safety. After consultation in 
the morning, we resolved to trust in God for safety, 
and go forward with the meeting. 

The next evening the crowd returned, but the 
roughs did not have so much whiskey. They were 
more quiet, and a number of them stood in the house 
during service. They looked, however, very sullen, 
and we thought they were bent upon some new 
deviltry ; but I looked to God in faith, and began 
my sermon, taking for my text, if I remember right, 
" O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child 
of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt 
thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the 
Lord ? "f They at first stared at me in a hard, 
brazen manner; but as I proceeded with my subject 
my soul became filled with the power of God, 

* John vii : 59, f Acts siii : 10. 



RIOTERS FALL UNDER THE POWER OF GOD. 115 

thoughts and facts of alarming interest opened to 
my mind, my tongue was loosed, and opened the 
batteries of God's truth, and poured the red-hot 
gospel right upon them. God's Spirit attended the 
effort with power, and it was not long until one of 
the wretches, who the night before had dragged his 
wife out of doors, and who was standing but a few 
feet from me, suddenly turned pale and fell head- 
long, measuring his whole length upon the floor ! 
He groaned and cried for mercy ; but I let him lie, 
showing him no attention, and continued preaching. 
Soon another fell in the same way, and another — 
until some half-dozen of the rioters were rolling and 
groaning on the floor under the mighty power of 
God ! Thus was the devil defeated in his designs 
on God's kingdom. 

This broke the ice. The meetings continued, and 
the work went on, until every responsible soul in that 
community, who, so far as we could learn, had attended 
the meetings, made a profession of religion ! 

Thus my dream was fulfilled. In the midst of a 
great storm every tree was peeled ! The spring time 
of rejoicing came ; " the singing of birds, and the 
voice of the turtle " * was heard in the land, and the 
barren desert was made to bloom and blossom as the 
rose. God's name was honored, and out of those 
rough ashlars from Nature's quarry did the God of 
protracted meetings hew out living stones for His 
spiritual temple, and establish a living Church. 

* Sol. Songs ii : 12, 



CHAPTER XII. 

EARLY PREACHERS — SUDDEN LOSS OP HAIR — PRATING 
A MAN OUT OP MEETINO — INCIDENT OF CRAZY JOE. 

As I have stated, when I first began my labors in 
the ministry, there was but one Baptist Association in 
Iowa, and all its churches did not contain a hundred 
members. Soon after this, however, we received 
some valuable additions to the ministry. They were 
of such men as Fisher, Post, Sperry, Ball, Elliot, 
Johnson, Jewett, and others worthy of note. They 
were all noble, self-sacrificing men, who had the 
cause of God at heart, and traveled and labored 
earnestly and actively for the establishment of 
churches and the salvation of souls. They were 
generally poor in this world's goods, and were called 
to endure hardships as good soldiers, often traveling 
on foot from one settlement to another, and at times 
lying upon the bleak prairies or the wild woods at 
night. Yet they were noble men of God, and under 
their labors hundreds of precious souls were con- 
verted, and many of the scattered sheep gathered up. 
Scores of other able ministers have since come forth 
to do battle for God, such as Griffith, Childs, Leon- 
ard, Lee, Edwards, Edminister, Eggleston, Cochran, 
Starkweather, Sutton, Gunn, Wood, Eberhart, Bush, 
Bates, Walton, Warren, and a host of others, many 



EARLY PREACHERS. 117 

of whom I do not know, neither have space to men- 
tion. Many churches have been organized and 
ministers raised up. Baptist doctrines have been 
spread through the State, and our denomination has 
moved forward with surprising force and energy. 
Many of the first pioneers have gone to their reward, 
and others are filling their places. " God buries His 
workmen, and carries on His work." They had to 
contend with much opposition, and endure many 
trials ; but the little feeble sect that was " every- 
where spoken against," as the disciples of old, is 
now numbered in its ministry by hundreds,* in its 
laity by thousands, and is still increasing. * 'Behold, 
what hath God wrought ! " 

Yet those pastors and people who have the care 
of the Iowa churches, and enjoy a home among them, 
ought to bear in mind how much it has cost of self- 
denial, labors, cares, and tears, upon the part of their 
predecessors, to establish them, and defend and sus- 
tain them with a jealous care, and labor to promote 
them with zeal ancSfedelity. If apathy and worldli- 
ness are allowed to prevail, and your church meet- 
ings, covenant meetings, prayer and Sabbath meet- 
ings, are neglected and your discipline slighted, the 
spiritual building will soon fall to ruin. God forbid 
that this shall be the case ; but may our Zion still 
be enlarged and strengthened. 

Many incidents might be related of the early min- 
istry which are of a laughable and of a serious char- 
acter. Brother J. M , a man who was just enter- 

* Who in point of talent will compare favorably with those of any- 
State. 



118 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ing the ministry, and who was uneducated and very 
timid, was called upon to lead a prayer meeting 
which was held one evening at a neighboring cabin. 
It was his misfortune on this occasion to have long, 
dry, bushy hair. The candle by which he read a 
chapter was placed near the window curtain. The 
chapter being read, all kneeled down for prayer. He 
prayed very earnestly for the descent of the Spirit, 
and that all might be fired up to start anew in the 
good cause. Forgetting his timidity in his earnest- 
ness, his prayer became quite lengthy, and in the 
mean time the window curtain caught fire from the 
candle ; the string by which it hung was burned off, 
and while he was at the very height of prayerful 
interest, to his sudden amazement the blazing fabric 
fell upon his bushy head, set fire to his hair, and in 
spite of his active and almost frantic efforts, shingled 
his head as close as would a barber. The result of 
the affair was so laughable, that the solemnity of 
the meeting could not possibly be maintained ; and 
he took so much to heart tft frequent jokes he 
received about it, that he came very near leaving the 
ministry. 

. In the fall of 1847, after my crops were secured, a 
Baptist Brother S urged Brother More and my- 
self to hold a meeting together in his cooper shop in 

L county. In addition to the community around, 

he had a number of coopers in his employ who lived 
with their families near the shop. The people of the 
community were generally wicked, especially the 

coopers, and Brother S was anxious to have 

something clone for their souls. 



PRAYING A MAN OUT OF MEETING. 119 

Getting on the ground, we circulated an appoint- 
ment, and prepared the shop with seats for the peo- 
ple. The meeting opened with very dull prospects, 
but we resolved to do all in our power to arouse the 
community before we gave them up, and appointed a 
sunrise prayer meeting in connection with the other 
services, to which we invited the attendance of sin- 
ners. The Lord finally came to our aid, and among 
the first converts were the wife and some of the chil- 
dren of one of the most wicked of the coopers. On 
hearing of this, he threatened to kill either one or 
all of his family that went any more to the meeting, 
and the following night, to show his determination, 
after getting about half drunk, he went himself to 
the meeting for the first time, that he might know 
if any of his family came. They, however, fearing 
his brutal disposition, especially when drunk, did not 
come. Brother More preached that night. As the 
shop was very long, we had our stand in the centre 
of one side. We had left open an aisle the whole 
length of the shop; and while Brother More was 
preaching, the scoundrel kept walking back and 
forth, up and down the aisle, pausing occasionally as 
he came near the preacher to listen a moment, when 

he would call him a " d d liar ! " and pass on. 

This he did in a loud voice, and continued his impu- 
dence through the whole sermon ; though sometimes 
changing his phraseology, he would say in reply to 

some remark in the sermon, " That 's a d d lie, 

sir ! " This was as trying to Brother More as any- 
thing could be, and under this annoyance he closed 
his sermon with embarrassment. It was my turn to 



120 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

exhort ; and having made up my mind as to what 
should be done if he called me a liar, I began the 
exhortation with all my might. But his impudence, 
if possible, now increased, and coming up close 

before me, he shouted, " You are a G — d liar ! " 

I then paused, and told the people that this disturb- 
ance, if allowed to continue, would break up the 
meeting, and that it must be stopped. The man 
now evidently thought he was going to be gratified 
with a row, this was what he wanted ; but I contin- 
ued and told them how wicked this man was, how 
he had insulted the Word of God and those who 
preached it, and that he had even threatened the 
lives of his poor wife and children, because they 
wished to attend the meeting, and in a free country 
at that. I told them that he was then under the 
effects of liquor, and near to the gates of hell, with 
a fair prospect of being lost forever ; and then re- 
quested all who were in the congregation to get 
down upon their knees, and that every one who could 
would pray that God would either convert this man, 
or otherwise get him out of the way of the meeting. 

Such tactics he did not expect, and was not pre- 
pared to meet. I led off in prayer, and he did not 
open his mouth. The moment the season of prayer 
was closed he quietly left the congregation, and im- 
mediately went out of the settlement. We heard no 
more of him during our stay. Where he went I 
never learned, but good order was restored for the 
remainder of the meeting. His wife and children 
came out in religion, and a goodly number of others. 

In this case the devil would have been pleased to 



j 



AN INCIDENT OF CRAZY JOE. 121 

have a row. We could have forced the man out — 
the crowd would have helped us ; hut God was our 
best and present help, and in Him we chose to trust. 
" For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, 
hut mighty through God to the pulling down of 
'strong holds,"* while "the wicked flee when no 
man pursueth." f 

At the close of the meeting above mentioned, we 
were urged to hold another in a deserted dwelling 
several miles distant. We sent forward an appoint- 
ment, and in due season were in the neighborhood ; 
but on the night when the meeting was to have 
begun the rain poured down in torrents, and as we 
supposed that not a soul would be out, we did not 
go. Yet, in our absence, one of the most novel 
meetings did occur of which I have ever heard. 
There was a young man living in the vicinity who 

was a licentiate, by the name of T . For the 

reader to understand what I am about to relate, he 

must remember that the mind of Brother T was 

somewhat enfeebled by poor health. There was 
another man, who was not a professor, by the name 

of D , who was remarkable for having large, 

white-looking eyes. He was about middle-aged, 

and about the same height as Brother T . These 

and a number of others, who were very anxious to 
hear the preaching, got in before the rain began, 
where they remained some time waiting for the 
preachers. There was a Baptist brother who lived 
a considerable distance from this place of meeting, 



* 2 Cor. x : 4 f Prov. xxviii : 1. 

6 



122 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

by the name of Thomson. He was a pious man, hut 
his mind was such that when it was affected above 
a certain degree of religious interest, it would be- 
come deranged ; and in this derangement he would 
often fancy that he had a call to preach. On account 
of this he was called " Crazy Joe." He had attended 
our meeting at the cooper shop, and was not alto- 
gether satisfied, because he thought we had not 
given him a proper chance to preach and exhort ; 
but being thoroughly waked up, he followed us to 
our new meeting. In crossing a field on his way, 
he cut a cornstalk and took it with him. While it 
was raining heavily without, he made his appearance 
in the meeting, dripping wet, with the stalk in his 
hand. Scanning the company and finding that the 
coast was clear of ministers, he resolved to go for- 
ward at once, and set the ship in order ; and without 
invitation or ceremony he went to the preacher's 
stand, set his cornstalk by the wall, and opened out 
on the people with a strong exhortation. 

He was very tonguey, and being a stranger to 
most of the people in the company, they supposed 
he was some minister who had been sent on to fill 
our appointment, and listened to him with close 
attention. For a time he talked well, but as he 
attempted to draw his remarks to a focus, they were 
something like as follows : " Brethren, a great work 
of salvation is needed here. Sinners are perishing 
around here by scores. But there is something 
wicked in the way. It 's hypocrisy ! There 's rot- 
tenness in the camp ! God can't and won't convert 
sinners among so many hypocrites. They must be 



AN INCIDENT OP CRAZY JOE. 123 

got out of the way. They must make deep and 
thorough confession of their secret sins, and get 
out of the way of sinners, or God will put them out 
of the way by a shorter method. I used to be a 
hypocrite myself!" Here he confessed to some 
-wickedness he had done when down in Missouri. 
" But," continued he, " I am not the only one ; 
there are others here, right in this crowd, and they 
will soon be found out ; God will detect and expose 
them before another morning. Their doom is close 
at hand!" As he was a stranger, and had so 
strangely introduced himself, this close cutting 
opened everybody's eyes, and some even had their 
mouths open with interest. Said he, " Yes, it 's 
awfully true ; if they don't confess and repent, they 
will be dead and in hell before morning. God told 
me so to-night ! I can find out who they are, for I 
can tell a hypocrite the minute I set eyes on him ; 
and I am going to find out some of them to-night." 

Here D 's big white eyes looked like dogwood 

blossoms. " But," continued Crazy Joe, " there 
is one man here in particular, for whom there is no 
mercy. I can find the man. Here is his measure," 
said he, holding up the cornstalk. Here Brother 

T trembled and sighed ; D 's eyes were as 

large as they could get. "Here is the measure, 
brethren ! Look at it ! This is your measure ! " 
All eyed the cornstalk, some of them with almost 
breathless interest. It was about five feet and nine 
inches in length, and there were four or Rye in the 
room, among them D and Brother T— , who 



AN INCIDENT OF CRAZY JOE. 125 

were about that height. It was an awful moment ! 

Several felt guilty, but brother T could stand it 

no longer. He arose trembling, and said, " Sir, I 
think I am the man ! " "Yes, yes," said Crazy Joe, 
approaching and measuring him with the cornstalk, 
' " this is just your length ; " and grasping him by the 
hand, "you are the very man. I could know that 
you were a hypocrite, just by shaking hands with 
you. Your hand feels like a poking stick ! " Joe 
now stood shaking him by the hand, and exhorted 
him with the most intense interest and haste to get 
ready for death instantly, for die he must. He 
declared that there was no hope that he could live, 
and that if he had anything to say before he died 
he must say it soon, for not a moment was to be 
lost. In the midst of this Brother T fell sprawl- 
ing on the floor, bellowing at a great rate, and tried 
to die. Some who thought they understood the case 

now gathered about Brother T , and tried to 

comfort him by telling him that they thought the 
preacher was crazy, but T would not be com- 
forted. They got the cornstalk and measured him 
as he was stretched upon the floor ; some insisted 
that their lengths were not equal, though in fact 

there was not half an inch difference. T begged 

to be prayed for ; Joe declared it was no use ; yet 

T begged so hard that prayer was offered for 

him. Joe now declared that the devil was in the 
house. Said he, " I know he is, I won't stay here," 
and away he ran through the rain, when it appears 
that he attempted to hide at some distance in an old 



126 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

corn-crib. But the night was very dark, and a large 
black dog, which he could not recognize, was sleep- 
ing there, and pitched on him. He tore loose from 
the dog, and running back to the place of meeting 
in great alarm, he said, "Brethren, the devil is all 
around here. I found him in the corn-crib as big 
as a mule ! I had a fight with him there. See how 
he has wounded me ! " holding up one hand, which 
had been bitten by the dog, and was bleeding. Said 
he, "It's dangerous to stay here." At this, a boy 
about sixteen years of age, who was at meeting, and 
who lived about a quarter of a mile distant, ran home 
in great fright. On getting there he found that the 
family had gone, and for security he hid himself 
under a bed. In the meantime Crazy Joe, who 
still exhorted all to leave because the devil was all 
around there, could not be persuaded to remain, and 
ran off again for safety. It so happened that the 
first house he entered was the one in which the boy 
was secreted. Finding no light, he went to the fire 
place, took the poker and stirred up the coals, and 
immediately began to look around to ascertain 
whether there was any devil there or not. The boy, 
who had begun to be afraid of the man as well as the 
devil, kept very quiet, but he was soon found under 
the bed, and Joe, supposing him to be the devil, 
threatened to kill him at once. The boy yelled 
awfully, and begged for quarter ; but Joe was re- 
solved that the devil should not fool him in that 
way, and he seized him. After a short tussle, how- 
ever, the boy managed to escape ; when he ran back 



AN INCIDENT OF CRAZY JOE. 127 

to the meeting and told what had happened. By 

this time poor Brother T had been brought to 

his right mind, and every one understood the case. 
Crazy Joe was soon cared for, and all went home. 
We afterward held a meeting at that place, though 
'with small success. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

MINISTERS' WIVES — MEETING AT R* * * — PASTOR CON- 
VERTED DRIVEN FROM THE MEETING-HOUSE THE 

POOR WOMAN'S MITE — REFLECTIONS A THOUGHT ON 

REVIVALS. 

Up to the fall of 1848, Mrs. Pickard had never been 
satisfied for me to give my time fully to the ministry. 
She had no objection to my preaching on the Sab- 
bath, or spending a week day occasionally in holding 
a meeting, but to cast myself on the altar, and sacri- 
fice my time for weeks and months together, and 
exhaust my strength, without any remuneration, as 
I had been doing, she insisted was not my duty. 
She thought we were too poor to endure it, and that 
the condition and wants of the family could not 
righteously allow it. I felt, however, that the scarcity 
of ministers, the destitution of gospel labor among 
the perishing, and the wants of Zion, demanded it. 
Besides this, I was so eagerly beset with entreaties 
to hold meetings here and there, by persons who 
would take no refusal, that I could not, in the opinion 
of the people, do credit to the ministry without much 
sacrifice of time; otherwise I would have been 
thought too worldly : such was the sentiment of the 
people. This fall, I once agreed to go with Brother 



ministers' wives. 129 

More, and be gone a few days at a meeting in a very 
busy time. My wife felt hurt about tbe matter. She 
blamed Brother More for coaxing me off, and rebuked 
me for what she thought my folly in promising to 
go. She insisted that, promise or no promise, I 
should not go; for, as she claimed, the promise 
was unjust, therefore I had no right to keep it. ~No 
more was said for the present, but when my colleague 
came along and called for me, I felt that the Master's 
business was so important that I must go. I has- 
tened to the house to change my clothes, but lo, they 
were gone, and not to be found ! Mrs. Pickard had 
concealed them. I, however, slipped out quietly, 
and went to the meeting in my dirty ragged suit, in 
which I had worked on the farm all the week. On 
my return she was so mortified at what I had done, 
that I really felt sorry for her ; but she never tried 
the plan again, nor has she tried in any way to 
prevent my absence from home, as often as I 
have chosen to go. Her ambition for us to obtain 
an earthly competency was broken ; she lost all hope 
of worldly success, became resigned to our thriftless 
fortune, contented to live in poverty, and gave me 
up as an offering to the church. She has never been 
disposed to murmur at our sacrifices, but has always 
given me encouragement to go as duty seemed to 
call, and she has often urged me to go when she 
knew, and I knew, that I was badly needed at home 
by reason of our necessities. 

Many were the shifts and turns which she made 
in the earlier days of my ministry, to keep the wolf 

from the door. Often she has taken in sewing and 
6* 



130 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

knitting, and other kinds of work, to aid in the sup- 
port of our family, while the wives and daughters of 
many of those whom I served without pay, would 
have been ashamed to have done the same things. I 
do not speak of this experience as a precedent, which 
some may think ministers' wives ought now to follow, 
but rather as a memory of the past. I am aware 
that it is not yet past with the wives of many of them; 
they are yet often compelled to make all sorts of 
shifts and turns to live. Fortunately, however, they 
usually become very ingenious in those things. I 
knew one of those dear women who, while her hus- 
band was off preaching, attempted to raise a garden. 
She had a good sized patch of potatoes, which, after 
much hard work in hoeing, she feared she was going 
to lose by the bugs. Finding, at last, that the bugs 
were of such a kind that they made good blister 
plasters, and would command a good price, she took 
some water in a large pan, which she moved along 
under the vines, and with a stick thrashed the bugs 
into it, where they were drowned. She then dried 
them in the sun, and sold them to a druggist for 
nearly twelve dollars. Being freed of the bugs, she 
raised a fine patch of potatoes and a good garden, 
and in the mean time took in knitting, by which she 
earned eighteen dollars, and when her poorer half 
returned, with a still poorer purse, she could show 
the most money. Reader, you must not think that 
the good things I have said about Mrs. Pickard 
come simply from that partiality which arises from 
conjugal feeling, for it is not so. I do declare to 
you, that if I have been useful and successful in the 



MEETING AT K * * * . 131 

ministry, I am indebted to her for it, more than to 
any other person living. 

In the fall of 1848, I shouldered my bundle and 
started on a campaign in Illinois. I walked on, not 
knowing the precise destination of my journey, until 
by some providence I stopped at the town of R * * * , 
in the county of S * * * , distant from home about 
seventy miles. 

Learning that there was a small Baptist church 
there, and that it had not enjoyed a revival for sev- 
eral years, I circulated a notice that I would preach 
in the community the next evening. In the mean 
time I learned that they had a pastor, but both 
church and pastor had fallen into such an indifferent 
state, that they had not had a single meeting of any 
kind for six months past. 

A few came out the first evening, and gave such 
good attention that I told them that if there was no 
objection I would preach again the next evening. 
To this there seemed a general agreement, and by 
the time of the next meeting the news was better 
circulated, and the congregation much increased. 

I talked to them in my usual plain and bare- 
handed style, and preached up doctrines and duties 
to the professors which were very offensive to some 
of their backslidden hearts. The pastor, above all, 
seemed to be very severely hit, and as soon as I 
closed my sermon he arose and asked me to show 
my credentials. I did not have them by me, and 
scarcely knew what to do; but, fortunately, after 
some embarrassment, a man who was present 
reported himself, and told the congregation that 



132 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

lie knew my reputation very well as a Baptist 
minister, and that my standing was good. This 
appeared to be satisfactory to all but the pastor, 
who seemed to bear the rebuff badly, and took his 
seat, where he maintained a sullen silence the rest 
of the evening. I then took a rising vote of the 
congregation, that they might decide whether they 
wanted meetings there or not. I told them that, if 
they saw fit, I would continue the meetings there a 
number of evenings more. Strange to say, only one 
man voted for it, and he was not a professor. Yet, 
from some cause, no one voted against it; I suppose 
they were ashamed. I felt satisfied that God had a 
work there for me to do, and as the chance was 
gained, although it was only by one vote, I an- 
nounced that I would begin a regular series of night 
meetings. Some one now spoke up, and said that 
the meeting-house could not be used for meeting, 
as it was rented for a school- house. At this, the 
school-teacher, who happened to be present, arose 
and said, " Gentlemen, I pay rent for this house, 
and have charge of it. It is entirely under my 
control, and this minister can hold meetings in it 
as long as he wishes." This settled the question o± 
the right to use the house ; but thus was I tried at 
every point. Every effort was made to discourage 
me. The church had just enough religion to oppose 
religious efforts and quarrel with God's ministers ; 
but I gave notice that I should hold meetings a 
number of nights more, before I dismissed. ~No 
person in the vicinity offered me the hospitality of 
his house — not even so much as a bed, or a bite to 



CONVERSION OF A PASTOR. 133 

eat. I had the fortune, however, to find an acquaint- 
ance, the only one I knew in the whole country, 
who lived three miles from the place. "With him I 
was welcome, and I walked that distance back and 
forth, to get bed and board. 

, On the third night of my meeting the house was 
well filled, and the audience was very attentive. 
People were pricked in their hearts, and a score or 
more of them came to the anxious seat. The ice 
was now broken. The Work went on from that 
time with power, and souls were converted every 
evening. Old hopers began to see themselves as 
" weighed in the balances and found wanting," and 
began to make confession of their sins. 

One evening, while sinners were pressing forward 
to the anxious seat for the prayers of Christians, 
whom should I behold among them but the old 
pastor of the church ! He had attended the meeting 
at first as a matter of policy, and though it was 
repulsive for him to be there, he thought that as he 
was a minister he must frequent the meetings for 
prudential reasons. As the work progressed, he 
became satisfied that he had never been regenerated, 
and that he had deceived his own soul and had been 
a deceiver of others. He earnestly besought us to 
pray for him, and he plead for the salvation of his 
soul in downright earnest. After a season of deep 
grief, in which he had many struggles, he rejoiced 
greatly, and professed the hope that he was happily 
and soundly converted to God. 

After this he was one of my warmest friends, and 
helped me faithfully in the meeting, during the 



134 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

remainder of my stay. What is better, lie was ever 
after a devoted and useful minister of the gospel. 

The crowd that now attended the meelings had 
become so large that only a part of them could get 
into the house. Some Methodist brethren said to 
me, " Our house of worship is only about a quarter 
of a mile from here, and it is larger ; come and hold 
your meetings in it." I gladly accepted their kind 
invitation, and took my congregation there. 

The house was crowded there also, but the accom- 
modations were somewhat larger, and prospects 
appeared better. It was not long, however, before I 
found that with the willingness to turn the Baptist 
meeting into the Methodist house, there was also a 
willingness to make a Methodist meeting of it. On 
the first night I called for the anxious after the ser- 
mon, and there were fifteen came forward, all young 
gentlemen and ladies. As these seekers kneeled at 
the anxious seat, the Methodist people began to be 
very noisy. As there was a railing about the altar, 
I got the anxious inside, to prevent them from in- 
trusion by the pressure of the crowd, but the Metho- 
dist brethren and sisters crowded indiscriminately 
inside the railing, to help the seekers get religion 
and have a loud time. Some of them locked hands 
in a half circle, and stood swaying back and forth 
and shouting. Others kneeled among the seekers, 
and, amid short ejaculations of prayer, pounded 
them on the back. Some who were tobacco-chewers 
carelessly spit on their clothes. Others trod on them, 
and in the midst of the excitement some were pushed 
clear over them, by those who were shouting and 



DESPERATE ELOQUENCE. 135 

pressing up from behind ; and withal, the rowdies 
who stood upon the benches took the occasion to 
laugh and talk, and halloo " Amen" to each other 
back and forth. In short, we had confusion to per- 
fection. I could do nothing to control it, nor could 
,1 do anything for the anxious. All I could do was 
to look on and take it as patiently as possible. In 
about half an hour from the beginning of this 
excitement there was a partial lull, and I began to 
think we would have order once more, that I might 
counsel and pray with the seekers. But I was 
doomed to disappointment. One of the brethren, 
who was a local preacher, determined on a desperate 
effort of eloquence, as it appeared, to raise it again. 
He saw that the tide was falling, and that if some 
stirring movement was not made it would soon die 
out. 

Mounting the pulpit, and opening his mouth very 
wide, he raised his voice to the highest pitch and 
gave us eloquence about as follows : " Brethren, I 
thank God that I am aboard the old ship of Zion. I 
am glad that I have come aboard. I feel like taking 
a fresh sail in her to-night. Brethren and sisters, 
loose the cable and let her swing out. The gales 
are blowing from heaven ; hoist her canvas and let 
her sail. Glory to God!" Here he began to jump 
and slap his hands, and shout " Glory to God !" 
Amens and shouts were heard all through the house, 
and in a moment the preacher's voice was almost 
drowned in the general noise. This state of things 
continued until about eleven o'clock, ^vhen, having 
despaired of restoring order, I dismissed the meet- 
ing with as little ceremony as possible. 



136 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

The next day I went about to visit those who had 
been at the anxious seat. Some of them declared 
that they were actually sore from the pounding they 
had received while they were kneeling for prayer. 
They felt so mortified at the proceedings and the 
way they had been used, that they had resolved to 
go forward no more. The dresses of some of the 
young ladies were in a wretched condition, and it 
was with difficulty that I could pacify them. But I 
urged that these things were nothing compared with 
the loss of their souls, and promised them all that 
if they would still go forward and continue to seek 
religion at the meetings, I would be responsible for 
keeping everybody outside the altar except such as 
were invited there to labor and pray with them, and, 
setting life and death before them again, I exhorted 
them to go forward. 

The next night I told those brethren of the eon- 
fusion the night before, alluding to the way in which 
some of the seekers had been pounded on their backs, 
had their clothes torn, soiled, &c, and told them 
that they might make as much noise as they pleased, 
but that I now requested them to keep outside of 
the altar unless they were invited to go in for the 
benefit of the mourners. After this there was 
general quiet, and for the remainder of the meeting 
I never saw a more orderly assembly. They gener- 
ally seemed to receive the new order of things 
kindly, and they worked and prayed with us in har- 
mony until the meetings closed, and about forty had 
joined the Baptist church. Besides these, a goodly 
number of the converts had joined elsewhere, or 



THE CIRCUIT-RIDER. 137 

were still holding the question of their church rela- 
tion under advisement. The work was still going 
on ; we had frequent conversions and baptisms, and 
it seemed that the whole country was going to turn 
to the Lord. The Methodist brethren generally 
worked with us in harmony, and rejoiced with us in 
the salvation of souls. 

• Finally the Methodist circuit-rider came around, 
and on seeing what had occurred his jealousy was 
awakened. Taking the stand, he expressed his dis- 
like of Baptist influences, spoke of the dangerous 
tendency of Baptist doctrines, said he did not believe 
in building meeting-houses for their use, and for- 
bade my using the house any longer. 

According to Methodist rule, of course the 
preacher was the highest authority; and besides this, 
his movement was encouraged by two or three of 
his brethren who were leading spirits in the society, 
and very sectarian in their feelings ; and although I 
felt that it was a great disappointment, I thought it 
would be best, for the sake of the new converts, to 
avoid any show of retaliation, and as quietly as 
possible I closed the meeting.* Notwithstanding 
all the hindrances of which I have spoken, a glorious 
work of God was done in that meeting. A Baptist 
church, worse than dead, was aroused and reclaimed; 
many good members were added to it, so that it was 
made a strong church ; and besides this a man claim- 

* This circumstance, and many others of a similar character, forci- 
bly remind me of a remark I saw in the biography of a Methodist 
minister by the name of Cartright. He says, "I have never to this 
day found out what a Baptist means by a union-meeting." 



138 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ing to be a minister, and who was doing much harm, 
was truly and soundly converted to God, and made 
to be a light in the world. 

The preacher who was so determined that the 
Baptists should not hold meetings in his meeting- 
house, is, I am told, yet living, and is now some- 
where in Iowa. I have no doubt that as often as 
he has thought it profitable, which has been often 
enough, he has preached very warmly on the loving 
beauties of harmony and fellowship among all 
denominations of Christians, and I wish him success 
in that work. 

Before I left the friends in R* * * a collection was 
taken for my benefit. This collection was meager, 
but the liberality of one sister is worthy of a notice 
in this book. 

She had been a poor backslider, and had been 
renewed at the meeting. Being very poor and 
having no money to give at the collection, she went 
to the woods and gathered a quantity of wild grapes 
which she took to market and sold for twenty-five 
cents. On the night of the collection she gave it all. 
Having heard the facts in the case, I went to the 
poor woman and urged her to take back her twenty- 
five cents, but she would not receive it. She 
declared that she felt such gratitude to God for her 
deliverance, and such thankfulness to his servant, 
that it was a happy privilege for her to give it, and 
that she only regretted that it was not many times 
as much larger in amount. 

I have often thought, with pleasure, of the Chris- 
tian liberality and godly spirit of that sister ; and I 



the widow's mite. 139 

doubt not, that if she now lives to read this book 
the Lord has returned to her " good measure, pressed 
down, shaken together and running over.* Her 
example teaches one good lesson, and that is, where 
there is a will to support the gospel there is a way. 
This incident often reminds me of another : "And 
he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, 
Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath 
cast more in than all they which have cast into the 
treasury. For all they did cast in of their abund- 
ance, but she of her want did cast in all that she 
had.f J 

I shall here offer a reflection on attempting revi- 
vals. There is, perhaps, no true Christian who will 
not desire a religious reformation in his church or 
neighborhood, yet there are members and there are 
churches that very seldom or never enjoy them. I 
believe that in a great measure the reason for this 
may be found in the fact, that such churches and 
people have a kind of impression that a true revival 
must always be preceded by certain signs and divine 
indications of an unusual character, such as "the 
sounds of a going in the tops of the mulberry 
trees," &c; and that until such signs or indications 
do occur they feel that it is not their duty, and often 
that it is positively not right, to make special or 
unusual efforts, such as the holding of a number of 
night-meetings or day-meetings in succession, to 
promote a revival. As I shall deal with this subject 
at greater length hereafter, I shall not discuss it now, 

* Luke vi : 38. f Mark xii : 43, 44. 



140 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

but ask you, reader, to apply the doctrine just stated 
to the origin and history of this meeting at E * * *. I 
could hear of no favorable signs or indications ; there 
had been no movings of the Spirit, the church was so 
dead that they had not held a meeting of any kind 
for six months. They did not want a meeting after I 
went there and had preached two nights. Only one 
man voted for it, and he was not a professor. The 
pastor or others tried to defeat and discourage from 
beginning to end. The very fact that the church 
was in a dead and shameful condition, was the 
strongest reason why I began the meeting. It is 
true that the meeting was not what it would have 
been, had I met with less opposition, yet, you see, 
the result was glorious. I do not believe that any 
special indications of a revival moved the spirit of 
Paul when he " stood in the midst of Mars-hill, and 
said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things 
ye are too superstitious." Evidently the contrary 
was the fact, for it is said that " his spirit was stirred 
within him when he saw the city wholly given to idol- 
atry." Yet he enjoyed a revival, and witnessed are- 
formation, for it is said that " certain men clave unto 
him and believed ;"* and I am confident that if many 
of our churches and ministers would quit waiting for 
special indications, and do as Paul did on that occa- 
sion, they would witness similar results. Indica- 
tions of a revival are cheering to pastor and people, 
and when they occur they should be improved; but 
it is certain that if we do but little more than wait 
for them they will never come. 

* Acts xvii : 16-34. 






CHAPTER XIV. 

CONVERSATION WITH A BACKSLIDDEN DEACON RETURN 

HOME THOUGHTS ON THE SPIRIT GOES BACK TO 

LYTTLETON — WICKEDNESS OF THE PLACE HOLDS 

A MEETING GREAT REVIVAL INCIDENTS OP THE 

POWER OF GOD DANCING-MASTER AND HIS CLASS 

CONVERTED REFLECTIONS. 

Having learned that there were thi ee or four Bap- 
tist families in the town of Lyttlcton, which was 
about twelve miles from the place of my last meeting, 
I concluded to go and hunt them out, and give them 
some preaching. Being directed to the house of 
Deacon W * * *, as the man who it was thought 
would probably give me the most information and 
encouragement, I called upon him. As I entered 
the house, he was writing some vendue notices for 
the sale of some property which had belonged 
to his son, lately deceased. After the common 
civilities, I said : 

" Mr. "W* * * *, was your son a Christian ?" 
"No," said he; "he was a blacksmith." 
" I was told," said I, " that there were some 
Baptist people in or about this village." 

" There were some," said he, " who were Baptists, 
but I guess they are nothing now." 



142 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

"I am a Baptist minister," said I, "and I have 
come to hunt them up, and hold • some night meet- 
ings with you." Here he eyed me very closely. 
" What encouragement can you give me ?" 

"None at all," said he; "the people here care 
nothing about such things." 

" But," said I, " can we not persuade them, by 
God's help, to care something about them ?" 

"No," said he; "you could not get them out to 
meeting." 

" I should like to try it," said I. 

" It is no use," said he, " it would be very incon- 
sistent, for there is no place to hold a meeting, and 
besides that there is no place in the village where 
you can get kept over night." 

It did not seem to occur to him that his own 
house was not more than a mile from the village ; 
but I saw that he was wofully backslidden, and did 
not want a meeting, but was inclined to do all he 
could to discourage it. I thought that as he who 
was known as a deacon could show no encourage- 
ment, not even so much as to keep me over night, 
or do anything but really oppose the idea, I had 
better start home, and home I went. 

The roads were so very bad that the journey of 
seventy miles made me very foot-sore and weary, 
and it took me several days to recover from the 
effects of the trip. 

I believe that I was pretty thoroughly converted 
from Quakerism, but in one respect I am something 
of a Quaker yet. I do not believe in waiting at all 
times until we feel that we are moved by the direct 



THOUGHTS ON THE SPIRIT. ' 143 

agency of the Spirit ; yet I do believe that if we live 
spiritually-minded, and breathe a praying atmo- 
sphere, with an earnest desire to do the will of God, 
we shall be often led by the Spirit to do what God 
will have us do. Says the Scripture, " For as many 
as are led by the Spirit of God they are the sons of 
God."* My own experience in the ministry has 
often proved this, and kindred passages, to be 
literally true ; and I am satisfied that Christians and 
Christian ministers would often be much more useful 
if they would seek to follow the leadings of this 
heavenly Counselor. When I returned from my 
last revival meeting, I thought that the wants of my 
family and myself required my attention at home for 
the rest of the winter, and that I should stay at 
home. 

But I had not remained there long until my 
mind began to run back to the village of Lyttleton, 
from 'which I had been scared by the backslidden 
deacon. 

A feeling that I ought to return and preach at that 
place grew upon me until I finally felt that it would 
be wrong for me not to go. There appeared no 
earthly reason for such a feeling, for I had decided 
that there was not a more unpromising place for 
meetings to be found. Yet I was now unable to 
banish it from my mind, and felt that I must return. 
In a month from the time I left L * * * I went, " led 
by the Spirit," as I thought, back to the same place. 

The first thing I did was to put up at the village 

* Rom. viii : 14. 



144 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

hotel, where I engaged my board and lodging for 
an indefinite time. I then took a more complete 
survey of the place. The village contained some 
two or three hundred inhabitants. There was no 
meeting-house in the place, nor had there been any 
preaching, or even a prayer-meeting held for months 
past. There was a dancing-school which was well 
attended, and for which they had a building on 
purpose. 

The most honored dignitary in the place was the 
dancing-master. There were also two or three 
dram-shops, doing a driving business in the drinking 
and gambling line. The people were very profane, 
and, in short, the entire village and surrounding 
community seemed wholly given over to sin and 
hell. 

Thought I, this is a godless, hopeless-looking 
place, sure enough ; but I w^Il plant my batteries 
and throw some shells into the devil's kingdom at 
all hazards. 

The best place for holding meetings that could 
be obtained was an old dirty school-house. Having 
secured this, I circulated a notice about the place 
that I would preach there that night. I then bought 
some candles and lighted up, and sat down to wait 
for a congregation. After a while I began to think 
that none would come ; but finally, at a late hour, 
six persons came in and I preached to them. The 
second night twelve persons were present, and the 
third night the house was filled. I felt that I was in 
the line of duty, and God blessed my soul greatly in 
preaching. I prayed for the people, sang, preached 



LYTTLETON — ITS WICKEDNESS. 145 

and exhorted with my utmost energy. That night 
clouds of mercy began to appear in the deep feeling 
manifested, and from that time to the close of the 
meeting, the house seemed but as a nut-shell to the 
throngs of people that gathered from every quarter. 
God visited the meeting in great power. Every 
night the number of anxious was increased ; and in 
many cases persons for whom we had the least hope 
were found among the seekers. In some instances 
strong men would? suddenly fall prostrate under the 
power of the Spirit. One night while I was exhort- 
ing, there were four young men who were termed 
" hard cases," who had been crowded up by the 
press until they stood close before me. They were 
all standing up, and locked together with their arms 
over each other's shoulders. In some way my soul 
became powerfully aroused, as I looked upon them 
and saw their God-defying countenances, and I had 
the boldness for a few moments to address my 
exhortations to them personally. Under almost any 
other circumstances my movements would have been 
imprudent ; but I felt that the Spirit's presence was 
awful, and in my earnestness I shook my hands 
within a few inches of their faces as I poured out 
upon them the threatenings of God to the guilty. 
At first their countenances fell, then they began to 
sway from one side to the other, then to reel and 
totter, and finally the whole pack fell headlong upon 
the floor together crying for mercy. 

One circumstance occurred which shows that the 
wicked are not so indifferent to the prayers of Chris- 
tians as they often pretend. Having gone into the 
7 



146 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

back part of the congregation one night to invite 
sinners to go forward for prayers, I made the request 
of a young man while he was sitting in his seat, 
and he gave me a very saucy reply to the effect that 
our prayers were all nonsense, and that he cared 
nothing for them. 

Said I to him, " Young man, do you really believe 
that?" 

" Yes sir," said he, " of course I do." 

" Are you willing, sir, that I should put the matter 
to a solemn test in your case ?" 

" How do you want to test it?" said he. 

" Why, sir, by your consent I will test it now, 
right on the spot. I will kneel down and pray God 
to take your life instantly." And I began to kneel, 

It was a solemn matter, and an awful moment. 
"Why I felt and proposed as I did I do not know, 
but I was certainly in earnest and would surely have 
made the prayer ; but as I was in the act of kneel- 
ing he exclaimed in great excitement, "0 don't! I 
beg of you don't do it!" said he. 

"But, sir," said I, "if prayer is nothing but non- 
sense, it will not hurt you," and I insisted on pray- 
ing as I had proposed. But his pleadings finally 
dissuaded me from making the attempt, and he was 
soon broken in spirit and bowed at the anxious 
seat. 

The religious interest in the community became 
such that people, of their own accord, hauled timber 
from the woods and built large log-fires outside of 
the house, around which those who could not get in 
would gather, and stand in mud and snow, half-shoe 



ORGANIZES A CHURCH. 147 

deep, to hear the gospel and witness the progress 
of the meeting. To accommodate the large num. 
bers which gathered around the house, a platform 
was erected by one of the windows, on which I 
afterwards stood and preached to the people. 

After the meeting had been in progress some 
time, the village dancing-master, was converted, and 
after this occurred nearly his whole class of pupils, 
which was about fifty in number, came out in 
religion. It was a most searching time upon the 
hearts of the people. False hopes were exposed, 
false hiding-places uncovered, sandy foundations 
were destroyed, and souls everywhere throughout 
the neighborhood seemed to be shaken by the 
mighty wind. 

The crowd was so dense that the convicted could 
not all get to the anxious seat. There were many 
of that class whom I could not get to speak with 
personally, and I had to exhort them publicly, and 
leave them to themselves and to the mercy of God ; 
yet many of them were converted, and the tide of 
salvation rolled over the community. 

I continued the meeting for about three weeks, 
having conversions and baptisms every few days, 
and before I left we organized a church of one 
hundred and twenty-five members. Beside these 
there were many professed religion who at that 
time did not join the church. There was a wagon 
road running through Lyttleton from M * * * to 
B * * *, and quite a number of travelers, who would 
halt for the night and attend the meeting, went 
away some convicted and some converted, most of 



148 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

whom I have never heard from, but hope to see at 
the great protracted meeting in heaven. 

Such strange and unexpected conversions took 
place at the meeting, and so many "hard cases" 
were slain by the Spirit, that it was said that some 
of the teamsters on the road actually became afraid 
to stay in the place over night, lest the " influence " 
should come upon them and set them to weeping 
and praying. 

During the meeting there were many instances 
of the power of the Spirit, a couple of which I will 
yet relate. 

A very wicked man, while standing by one of 
the log-fires and looking at some others who were 
groaning on account of their sins, commenced swear- 
ing and cursing in a terrible manner, and declared 
that he could not be so overcome as to act the fool 
in that way. He had scarcely closed his mouth, 
when he was suddenly seized with such an awful 
conviction of his guilt that he acted as one dis- 
tracted. Fearing that he would be damned instantly, 
he screamed and ran to the door and tried to get in 
where the circle of prayer was, that he might be 
prayed for. Finding the door so pressed by the 
crowd standing inside that he could not open it, he 
ran to a window, climbed in, and tumbled over the 
heads of the people, regardless of bonnets or any- 
thing else, and fell upon his knees near the preacher, 
begging, in a very loud voice, for the preacher and 
everybody else to pray for him. He continued in 
great agony and supplication until near morning, 
and declared that he was afraid he was going to 



AN INCIDENT OF THE POWER OF GOD. 149 

fall into hell head-foremost. He almost despaired, 
but finally God had mercy on him, and he was filled 
with great joy. 

There was quite an intelligent man living near 
the school-house, who had considerable wealth, and 
was somewhat prominent in the community. He had 
been raised a Catholic, and was then a member of the 
Catholic Church. He was a very wicked man, and 
feigned to have an utter contempt for the religious 
manifestations and the meeting. In one of our 
morning exercises he became convicted ; but feeling 
mortified and unwilling to yield, he, for the lack of 
something better to spend his rage upon, became 
very angry at the preacher, and sought to break up 
the meeting. He swore that he would rather go to 
hell and be damned, than disgrace himself at the 
anxious seat. He went from the house in a great rage, 
and having a pen of hogs near by, he went to pound- 
ing them for the purpose of disturbing the services. 
Becoming weary at that, and thinking it slow work, 
he determined to butcher his hogs. It was not far 
from butchering time, and he thought it would 
afford a good pretext for disturbing the meeting by 
the squealing of the hogs. "With this intention he 
went to the timber to get some poles which he 
wanted in making his arrangements but on getting 
to the woods, his mind became so agitated and con- 
fused that he got lost, and spent the rest of the day 
wandering about and did not get back until after 
dark. He then came to the night-meeting in great 
distress, pleading for mercy. His soul was set at lib- 
erty before I invited the seekers forward, but as soon 



150 . AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

as the invitation was given he presented himself at 
the anxious seat, avowing that his reason for doing 
so was, that he had determined to break all promises 
he had ever made to the devil, and one was that he 
would never go to an anxious seat. This man 
became an interesting Christian. When the church 
was organized he was chosen a deacon, and has 
held the office with honor and usefulness ever since. 

In a few months, an excellent house of worship 
was built at L * * * and a good pastor settled. One 
year from that time I visited them, and found nearly 
all the converts faithful to their profession, and 
growing in grace ; and that church has remained a 
flourishing one unto this day. 

I think that taking this example for a basis, I may 
prudently offer a plea for protracted meetings. I 
do not believe that we ought to place our depend- 
ence entirely upon such means of grace for church 
extension, and Christian growth. All scriptural 
means ought to be used: but I do feel confident 
that among those means, the holding of protracted 
meetings by pastors and churches is one of the most 
efficient and successful ways of working for the 
upbuilding of churches and the salvation of souls. 

As some of my views upon this subject are ably 
set forth in a lively essay which was lately read by 
one of our brethren at a Baptist ministerial confer- 
ence in Illinois, and as I think our churches ought 
to see it, it shall constitute the next chapter. 



CHAPTER XV. 



ESSAY ON REVIVALS. 



Dear Brethren, — The subject you have chosen 
for me to discuss is one of extraordinary importance. 
It opens such a wide field for thought, that in a 
brief essay we can make but a mere introduction. 
We trust that no more than this will be expected. 

What is a revival ? The term has various mean- 
ings ; but in this essay we will consider it to mean 
just what Christians commonly mean when they 
say, " A revival;" and define it thus : 

An unusual demonstration of the power of God in any 
community, to awaken saints and convert sinners, 

I shall confine myself, chiefly, to what I consider 
the question of first importance. 

How can we promote revivals ? 

I premise, in the first place, that — 

If we would have revivals we must believe in revivals. 

"What!" says one: "Do not all orthodox people 
believe in revivals ? especially Baptists. Do not all 
Baptists believe in revivals?" I answer, No. Grant- 
ing the truth of our definition, they do not all believe 
In revivals. They may all say that they wish the 
churches to grow and prosper, but they wish them 
to be watered with dew. They are afraid of those 
big showers that have thunder and lightning in 



152 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

them, and set everybody and everything in commo- 
tion. They prefer to see the work go on gradually, 
and to see one or two horn at a time. This would 
not he a revival, although they prefer it. A revival 
is an " unusual demonstration of the power of God," 
while they prefer the usual. Then they do not fully 
believe in revivals. This class of brethren, whether 
in the ministry or laity, do not encourage these 
unusual demonstrations, and commonly never make 
special efforts to promote a revival. Nay, they fre- 
quently discourage such a work. They seem very 
much afraid of " excitement," just as though it were 
possible for a soul to be converted without being 
excited — for a person's eyes to be opened to see 
himself trembling on the brink of hell — exposed to 
eternal ruin, and immediately raised to a hope of 
heaven, without being excited ! We hear suoh per- 
sons say, frequently, that they are afraid of " fox- 
fire," in these special efforts ; yet in their concern 
about this, they forget, that without some special 
efforts there is much greater danger that they will 
have no fire at all. They are afraid that the converts 
will not be genuine — forgetting that the Saviour 
has likened the Kingdom to fish in a net, from which, 
when the fishermen drew it ashore, they selected the 
good and threw the bad away. They are afraid 
that these revivals will turn out badly in the end, 
by cultivating ultra views and establishing wrong 
precedents among the churches ; yet as big a dunce 
as Artemus Ward has been capable of telling us, 
that " If a man's views are right he cannot be too 
ultra ; and if they are wrong he cannot be too con- 



ESSAY ON REVIVALS. 153 

servative." But there is a long list of petty objec- 
tions : their name is legion ; those who harp upon 
them do not believe in real revivals ; and it will be 
unto them according to their faith — they will not 
be troubled with them. I do not say but that some 
of the fears alluded to are often realized — many of 
the converts will backslide, and many will be spu- 
rious. There may be things done which are better 
undone, and things may be said which are better 
unsaid : yet under these special efforts, multitudes 
will believe to the saving of their souls. If we will 
look at the statistics of those churches that have 
grown up without protracted meetings — and how 
few there are of such — we will find that they show 
as great, if not a greater number of exclusions, in 
proportion to the number of converts they receive, 
than those that have. If any one doubts this, let 
him refer to the pamphlet produced by Deacon Wil- 
bur, of Boston, on the labors of Elder Knapp,* and 
he will see that there is no chance to doubt it. If 
those brethren who borrow so much trouble about 
the frequent apostacy of protracted meeting converts, 
would be equally troubled about the fact that by the 
working of their policy there are seldom any con- 
verts to apostatize, and that their churches have to 
be kept alive by immigration or die out, it would 
be better for Zion. Where there are converts there 
will be apostates, whether they have been brought 
in by protracted meetings or otherwise. The Word 
of God foretells it, and we may expect it. There 
were plenty of such under the wise and holy minis- 

. * See Appendix. 



154 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

try of the Apostles, and we cannot calculate on con- 
ducting things better than they. Those who urge 
that fact as a weighty objection to special revival 
efforts, and on account of the objection do not make 
such efforts, or encourage them, evidently do not 
believe in revivals ; and I say again, it will be unto 
them according to their faith. 

If we would have revivals we must make special efforts 
for them. 

We must watch the most favorable seasons for 
these efforts, and then hold protracted meetings. 
The church and pastor must devote themselves to 
prayer and Christian labors every day and every 
night, for days or weeks in succession. It is a 
stubborn fact, that in the West the great majority 
of converts have been born in protracted meetings. 
Most of our churches have had their birth, and the 
principal part of their growth, under God, through 
protracted meetings. I think it was at a meeting of 
the General Association of Iowa that a minister, 
while speaking upon this point, requested all the 
professors present who had found their hopes in 
seasons of protracted meeting to rise up. The con- 
gregation was large, and two or three hundred arose. 
He then requested those who had found their hopes 
under the usual means of grace to arise, and out of 
the multitude only nine persons arose ! Of these 
the speaker also observed, that if they would look 
back carefully, he thought that some of them, at 
least, would find that their first serious convictions 
began from protracted meetings. It should be 
remembered that this congregation was not of the 



ARGUMENT ON PROTRACTED MEETINGS. 155 

illiterate class, but consisted chiefly of ministers, 
deacons, and respected representatives from churches 
in various parts of the State ; and it cannot be said, 
in the face of that rising vote, as it is sometimes 
said, that protracted meetings draw in only the 
light trash of the community. 

Facts undoubtedly show that nine-tenths of the 
Baptists in the West have been brought into the 
churches under the influence of protracted meet- 
ings. In view of this I am astonished that such 
meetings are not of more common occurrence among 
the churches, and that there are many pastors and 
churches who live from year to year, for many years 
in succession, without making a single protracted 
effort. 

I remarked that we should watch for the favorable 
seasons in which to hold these meetings, but I do 
not mean that we should always wait. There are 
times when we see spiritual indications, and have 
unusual encouragement. In such times we ought 
to be found ready ; but if such times do not come, 
go forward, at all events, and hold meetings. 

Said I to a certain pastor, " You don't believe in 
protracted meetings, do you ?" 

" Not much," said he. 

" Do you believe," said I, " that it would be right 
to follow your Sabbath evening service by another 
on Monday evening ?" 

" Yes," was the answer. 

" Then," said I, " it would be no harm to follow 
that with service on Tuesday evening, and another 



156 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

on Wednesday evening, and so on through the 
week, would it ?" 

" Oh," said he, " it would be well enough to hold 
such meetings, perhaps, if we saw good indications 
to begin with; but otherwise, they do more harm 
than good.' 5 

This pastor has been settled about eight years, 
and I believe has never yet seen any " indications " 
which he thought warranted him in holding a pro- 
tracted meeting. Sometimes some of his brethren's 
children attend revivals at other places, become 
converted and join his church; occasionally a new 
member moves in, and thus the church lives, and 
thus only ; and he may vainly wait all his life for 
" indications," unless he grinds his sword and goes 
at it in earnest. The Testament does not say much 
to us about waiting that I can see. The Saviour 
has said, " Ask and ye shall receive," without 
specifying any time in the future to which we shall 
wait before we can receive the blessing ; but we are 
taught that we should go forward in God's work 
with earnestness, and he will bless our work 
speedily. 

There is good reason why protracted meetings 
are successful above other means of grace. If a 
sinner hears a good sermon on the Sabbath and is 
partly awakened, he has, under the usual means of 
grace, to wait a week before he will hear another ; 
and thus he has a long space of time in which to 
stifle his convictions, drive away his serious thoughts, 
and listen to the tempter. But when one stroke is 
followed by another and another, he has less time 



REVIVAL REQUISITES. 157 

to maneuver — is driven to the wall, and feels com- 
pelled to surrender to God. 

On the same principle, the people of God are 
kept in working order. They may attend one 
meeting, and before they have time to lose the ardor 
of their feelings they enjoy afresh the most power- 
ful means of grace. 

If we would have revivals, the laity must be 
trained to work for them. 

This responsibility must lie with immense weight 
upon the pastor. It is a trite saying, "Like priest 
like people." He must show the revival spirit in 
his preaching and conversation, for the people will 
become more or less assimilated to his character, 
whether it be good or indifferent. His preaching 
should be direct, earnest, pungent, and as searching 
as he can make it. He should be careful not to 
spend too much time in polishing his sermons, but 
bring out the stirring, convicting truth, if he has 
to let the drapery go. He should give backsliders 
and luke-warm professors no peace, but tell them 
that they are dead-weights to the church, stumbling- 
blocks to sinners, and clogs to the chariot wheels of 
salvation. He must strive to show all Christians that 
it is impossible for them to please God without work- 
ing for him, and he must get them, if possible, to 
make personal effort every day with the unconverted 
for their salvation. He must get them, if possible, 
to leave their homes, take up the cross, and visit, 
exhort, and pray from house to house among their 
neighbors. If the work of personal effort and visit- 
ing be left for the preacher alone, he cannot begin 



158 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

to do it. But let the deacons, and as many of the 
brethren and sisters as possible, go out in every 
direction, day after day, and talk with sinners. Let 
each one become a home missionary, and religion 
will soon become the all-absorbing theme in the 
community for miles around; believers will be 
strengthened, and sinners brought to God. 

I have never yet known of a church becoming in 
earnest in this work without souls being converted. 
The reason why such work is blessed is evident ; it 
is because it is God's arrangement. The book of 
Acts says, that after the death of Stephen the dis- 
ciples were all scattered abroad through Judea and 
Samaria, and they (that is, the disciples, not the 
apostles) " went everywhere preaching the Word" What 
was the result ? "We read that soon after this be- 
lievers were added to the church, and still a little 
later, " believers were multiplied." In those days, 
when the laity worked, fear laid hold upon the 
wicked, and they .were converted by hundreds and 
thousands. But in these days it is a common thing 
for the laity to attend the Sabbath service when con- 
venient, hear the pastor's sermon, pronounce it 
good, bad, or indifferent, and go home to assume no 
farther responsibility in the matter; and if their 
pastor should wish them to spend a day, or less, in 
missionary work among their neighbors, they would 
think the idea a novelty. Brethren, if the churches 
could control the latent power that is now slumber- 
ing in them, and have it wholly sanctified to God, 
we would see the hosts of Zion march forth to vie- 



GENUINE EVANGELISTS NECESSARY. 159 

tory, " clear as the sun,'fair as the moon, and terrible 
as an army with banners." 

If we would have revivals, we should try to sustain 
genuine evangelists. 

In doing this we fall in with the divine arrange- 
ment, and if we follow God's plan we shall succeed. 
He has called some to be evangelists, and has be- 
stowed upon them special gifts. Says Paul, " There 
are diversities of gifts." He tells us that some have * 
gifts for pastors, and some for evangelists. Now, if 
God has called this class of men he has a place for 
them ; but, for some reason, it appears that many of 
our people are almost ready to say that evangelists 
have no place in the churches, and that they ought 
to be nowhere. It is true that there are some who 
ought to be nowhere, but it is just as true of pastors, 
and we ought not to discourage evangelism because 
unworthy men are sometimes found in the work. 
There are evangelists who are available to the 
churches, and they are good men, who are favored 
of God, and prove a blessing wherever they go. 
For the fact that this class of men is in no. greater 
demand among the churches, the pastors are per- 
haps as much to blame as anybody else. The evan- 
gelist commonly selects a few of his warmest, choicest 
sermons, and preaches them as often, and repeats 
them so much, that he can make them more effective 
than a pastor whose old stock is exhausted, and who 
usually is obliged to try a new subject when he 
preaches. "With this advantage the sermons of the 
evangelist will he more powerful than those of the 
pastor, although his gifts may be inferior. For this 



160 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

cause a pastor will sometimes get jealous, make the 
trouble himself and throw the blame on the evange- 
list. If the meeting proves successful, the pastor 
will be apt to hear some silly brethren giving all the 
credit to the evangelist, and he will perhaps hear it 
intimated that the stranger would be just the man 
for a pastor, if the pastorate was only vacant. Under 
such trials the pastor needs prudence and humility ; 
but if, through his own folly and jealousy, he stirs 
up division and loses his place, it is his own fault. I 
believe that if the pastor has shown himself an 
earnest, godly man, and has the love of his people, 
he has little to fear in those things ; but if such is 
not the case, and he has but a frail hold upon their 
regard, it will be no damage to him or the cause if 
he does lose his place. 

Brethren sometimes object to foreign aid, because, 
they say, it takes money to pay for it, and they can 
scarcely sustain their pastor — hence they have noth- 
ing to spare. But I believe the pastor will find, in 
most instances, that the more there is raised for this 
purpose the more he will receive himself; for his 
flock and the financial strength of the church will 
commonly be increased more than enough to make 
amends. 

The advantages of evangelism are easily seen. 
The pastor, however good and talented he may be, 
after a lengthy settlement becomes an old bell to the 
careless, and there is a large class of this kind who 
must be called out and arrested by something that 
is novel. They seldom attend church unless some- 
thing new brings them out. Let the new preacher 



EVANGELISTS NECESSARY. 161 

come in with his warmest sermons, and let the pastor 
be active in getting the careless out, and they will 
come from every direction. The pastor will feel at 
greater liberty to urge people to come out and hear 
a stranger than he would to have them come out 
and hear him. There are those whom a pastor never 
can reach, while an evangelist can. Thus scores of 
the careless are brought under the means of grace 
who otherwise would not be ; the house of God is 
thronged; the members are encouraged. The min- 
istry is doubled in strength for the occasion, so that 
the pastor is not over-taxed, and the effort may thus 
continue for weeks, and religion be the common 
theme among saints and sinners, in the field or 
street, on the road or in the shop, and thus many 
will be brought to Christ through this union of 
strength. Let the pastor and evangelist understand 
each other before they commence laboring together. 
Let the pastor keep his throne, and let it be under- 
stood by all that it is not the evangelist who is hold- 
ing the meeting, but it is the pastor, and that the 
pastor has the meeting under his control, while the 
evangelist is only helping him. Let the pastor steer 
the boat, and the stranger pull the oars. Let them 
love each other, and put down jealousies, as Chris- 
tians ought to do. See that the foreign help remains 
until the revival is done, and not allow him to go 
off saying that it should continue right on just when 
it is ready to die, and then leave it to die on the 
hands of the pastor ; and my opinion for it, if pas- 
tors and evangelists will thus work together in har- 
mony, we will see more revivals in our churches. 



162 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Finally ', if we would have revivals, we must exercise 
faith in the reality and attainableness of the blessing. 

We must have faith in the specific thing, not a 
vague, general notion of something, we know not 
what. "We often treat the suhject of a revival as 
sinners commonly do the gospel, as something to 
be believed in, in some way, they know not how, 
and by somebody else, but not by themselves. We 
are apt to begin a series of meetings, and say we will 
try for a revival a few evenings, and if we can't 
make it go we will close the meeting; but such 
efforts will most surely fail. This is experimenting 
with God, and he does not want us to experiment 
on his promises, which are yea and amen in Christ 
Jesus : he wants his people to be in earnest, and take 
him at his word. Christ has said, " Ask and ye 
shall receive," and he expected us to believe it. If we 
would have revivals we must believe that God will 
grant them, and that in answer to our prayers and 
labors we will have them, and that we must have 
them. We must hang to the divine promises with 
an unyielding grasp — if necessary, in the night 
watches, or until the dawning of the day — and wait 
before the throne of grace in that spirit which 
prompted the prayer of John Knox, when he said, 
" 0, Lord, give me Scotland, or I die ! " We are 
too doubtful in our prayers and labors. If one 
brother can get hold of the arm of the Lord by 
faith, the community will be shaken as a forest in 
the mighty winds, and the wicked will quail before 
God and cry out, " What shall we do ! " 

When Jesus went to raise Lazarus, he commanded 



EVANGELISTS NECESSARY. 163 

tliem to take away the stone from the sepulcher. 
Brethren, sinners are dead, and our unbelief is the 
stone on their sepulcher I Let us roll away the stone 
and we will hear the voice of Deity saying to the 
sinner, " Arise, and come forth from the dead ! " 



CHAPTER XVI. 

GOES TO RUSHVILLE — LOANS A MEETING-HOUSE — RELI- 
GIOUS VISITS — A FIDDLER CONVERTED — IMPUDENCE 
OF A SINNER — A TUMULT AND THE RESULT — SPREAD 
OF THE REVIVAL — HOW IT CLOSED — DISAPPOINTMENT 
OF TWO MINISTERS — PERILOUS VOYAGE AMID THE 
ICE — PROVIDENTIAL ESCAPE — LABORS IN A MEETING 
— THOUGHTS ON DIVINE PROVIDENCE — RETURNS 
HOME — SUCCESS OF THE TOUR. 

Having bidden the newly-formed church at Lyttle- 
ton an affectionate farewell, and received many a 
" G-od bless you," I went to Rushville, Illinois. 
There was a small Baptist organization, which held 
meetings occasionally, about two miles north of the 
town, and the brethren wanted me to hold a meet- 
ing in the town. The place then contained about 
five thousand inhabitants. It had a seminary of 
learning, and there were in it several denominations 
of Christians, among which there was a church of 
Cumberland Presbyterians. The religious interest 
in the town was said to be unusually dull. The 
attendance at the places of worship was very small. 
The Cumberland Church had so nearly died out 
that they seldom had meeting ; but they owned a 
large meeting house, and we tried to rent it. We 
could not persuade them, however, to rent it, but 
thev consented to loan it for an indefinite time. 



RELIGIOUS VISITS. 165 

This offer we accepted, and I began a meeting in 
their house. It was soon evident to me that some- 
thing was required beside preaching, to awaken a 
religious interest among the people; and having 
announced that some of the brethren and myself 
would visit the families through the town as much 
as possible, by calling at their houses, we commenced 
visiting on the first Monday of my stay. We went 
out two and two, taking it street by street, to can- 
vass the town. This proved to be one of the hardest 
and happiest day-works I ever did. A good deacon 
went in company with me, and we spent the whole 
day, from early morning until late, exhorting and 
praying from house to house with the utmost dili- 
gence. The Lord seemed to go before us and open 
the way. Occasionally some of the members of a 
family would be seized with conviction during a 
season of prayer. Five persons declared themselves 
to have found peace in believing during this day's 
visits. In one instance we called at a place where 
the man of the house was within, playing on a violin. 
Said the deacon, " It's of no use to go in there, is 
it?" "But," said I, "we must go in and redeem 
our pledge." We ventured in, and he received us 
kindly. He laid by his fiddle, listened very respect- 
fully to all we had to say, and appeared to take a 
deep interest in our remarks. It finally turned out 
that he went to hear the preaching, and was the 
first one who experienced religion that night. This 
incident may be an encouragement to those who 
will attempt a similar work for the Master. To any 
such I will here say : fear not to enter the house of 



166 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

any one on so good an errand; "for thou knowest 
not whether shall prosper either this or that."* This 
visiting proved to be just what was most needed in 
that place. It was new tactics to the unconverted, 
and produced a general stir. On Monday evening 
the house was filled. This had not before occurred 
while we were there. The spirit of God rested 
upon the congregation in an unusual degree, and 
quite a number present were concerned for their 
souls. I invited the anxious forward for prayers, 
and as was sometimes my custom, I went back into 
the congregation to entreat individuals personally 
to go up to the altar of prayer. Among others, I 
saw two young ladies who were deeply penitent, and 
who desired to go forward for prayers ; but when 
they attempted it, a young man who was with them, 
and who I afterwards learned was a brother of one 
of them, posted himself between the slips, and would 
not allow them to go. Thinking that my presence 
might release them, I went to them and said, — 
" Young ladies, don't tarry — move right out." At 
this they took courage, and attempted again to pass 
him ; but as they did so, he laid hold upon one of 
them to detain her. Seeing this act of meanness, I 
could not endure it. Seizing him by the arm with 
a strong grip, and looking him sternly in the eye, I 
said to him sharply, " Kelease that lady, sir ! " At 
the same time I gave him a push backward, and 
the lady went forward. I suspected that he would 
grapple me for a fight — he seemed half inclined to 
do so, but for some reason he did not, and I moved 

*Sol. Songs, 11: 6. 



A TUMULT AND THE RESULT. 167 

on and engaged in counsel and prayer for the seekers. 

We had three stoves in the room, and I had been 
occupied but a short time at the anxious seat, when 
this fellow, who doubtless felt humiliated in the eyes 
of the lookers-on, and greatly enraged withal, caught 
hold of one of the stoves and turned it over, spilling 
the fire upon the floor, knocking down the stove- 
pipes, and filling the house with soot and smoke. ! 
Soon all was confusion. Some ran for water to 
extinguish the fire. Some carried the stove out of 
doors, and others took out the pipes. In the mean- 
while the offender ran out of doors, and himself 
and two or three others yelled about the windows 
like wild Indians, determined, if possible, to com- 
plete the disorder by breaking up the meeting. 
Order, however, was restored, and the meeting 
continued. 

Such occurrences do often dishearten the people 
of God in protracted efforts; but I would here 
remark that I have commonly seen them overruled 
for good. It was so in this instance. 

In using this desperate fellow Satan overshot his 
mark. The occasion was improved to show the 
people the unmasked deformity of sin. But this 
was not all; the next day, although it was very 
cold, this young man and one of his companions in 
iniquity, were found alone in an old, deserted 
wagon-shop, each one being in a corner by himself, 
weeping over his sins. Their own wickedness had 
corrected them.* Soon after this they went to the 
meeting as meek and quiet as lambs, and sought 

* Jer. ii : 19. 



168 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and found the favor of Him whose mercy knows no 
bounds. Thus does God often make the wrath of 
man to praise him, while the remainder of wrath 
he will restrain.* 

Our place of worship became so crowded, and the 
religious interest so general, that I requested the 
other denominations to open their houses of worship 
and hold meetings also. The Methodists and New- 
School Presbyterians did so, and although they had 
good crowds, our congregation . did not seem to 
diminish. So general was the interest that religion 
was the chief topic of conversation among saints and 
sinners all through the town, and it seemed that 
the awakening angel had knocked at every door. 
After we had witnessed about sixty conversions, 
and while our meeting was in full blast, one of the 
elders of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in- 
formed me that a couple of their ministers had come 
to preach to them, and that they must use their 
house of worship. As they had not been using the 
house for some time previous, and had not expected 
to use it soon, tbis move was unlooked for, and I was 
much taken aback; but the house was theirs, and thus 
suddenly ended our meeting. Under these embarras- 
sing circumstances a good number of our converts 
were lost to the Baptists ; but even thus the result 
was happy. We organized a good Baptist Church, 
which soon after built a meeting-house of their own, 
employed a regular pastor, and have sustained 
worship and prospered ever since. 

The two ministers who took the meeting off our 

* Psalm lxxvi : 10. 






PERILOUS VOYAGE AMID THE ICE. 169 

hands, I afterward learned had been sent for a dis- 
tance of seventy miles. They and their brethren had 
hoped to improve the opportunity which seemed 
presented in the large awakening to strengthen their 
church, but they were disappointed. When they 
commenced the house was filled with people, but 
though they preached every night for two weeks, 
public feeling was against them, and they finally 
closed their meetings with a congregation of twelve 
persons on Sabbath, and their church was in a far 
worse condition than when they began. 

Leaving Rushville, I set my face homewards. On 
getting to the Mississippi, I found the river so full 
of floating ice that the ferry could not run. The 
chances of getting across seemed small ; but long 
absence from my family made me anxious to hasten 
home, and I resolved to get over if possible. After 
some inquiry, I found a man who, for the sum of 
one dollar, agreed to attempted the passage in a 
skiff. I accepted his offer and we shoved out. The 
wind was blowing unfavorably against us from the 
western shore, but we thought that with proper 
caution we could work our way between the float- 
ing cakes ; but our difficulties increased as we went, 
and when we were about half way across the skiff 
became so hemmed in with ice that we could not 
advance. We attempted to clear away the ice, 
but with all our efforts we were soon so com- 
pletely locked in that we could neither advance nor 
retreat, and we found ourselves hopelessly floating 
down the river. To complete our troubles night 
soon came on, the wind increased to a strong gale, 
8 



170 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and it became bitterly cold. The raft of ice about 
us was constantly increasing, and apparently making 
our imprisonment more sure. "We renewed our 
efforts, and struggled our utmost to escape, but 
finally gave it up as hopeless and useless. 

It was now terribly cold; such intense cold 
I had seldom felt. We very much feared that 
we should freeze to death ! I thought it dreadful 
that we should perish in such a condition, beyond 
the reach of human aid, but committing myself into 
the hands of that God whom I loved and had tried 
to serve, I was resigned to wait patiently the issue, 
and abide it with Christian fortitude, whatever it 
might be. The gloomy aspect of either shore, the 
outlines of which we could but dimly perceive 
through the darkness as we floated on, together with 
the dismal sounds made by the grinding and crush- 
ing of ice-floats against the points and islands, served 
to make our condition appear more terrible. 

Thus we were carried down helplessly upon the 
broad stream. 

After we had floated about eight miles the wind 
providentially crowded our travelling prison into a 
bend of the river, on the Illinois shore, and as it 
struck the bank it was separated into several pieces. 
Seeing our prison doors thus thrown open we re- 
newed our struggles for liberty, and after several 
efforts we stood once more in safety upon terra 
firma. 

W T e were now not far from the town of W * * *, 
to which we hastened, and found a hotel as soon as 



LABORS IN A MEETING. 171 

possible, where we had a good fire and were soon 
restored to comfort. 

I soon fell into conversation with the landlord, 
who was a very agreeable man, and I told him of 
my late adventure. He said that it was next to im- 
possible to cross the river then, and that it was dan- 
gerous to attempt it. He told me that I might as 
well try to be contented, for I might be compelled 
to remain there several days. As we went on in 
conversation I found tliat he was a warm Baptist 
brother, and when I told him that I was a Baptist 
minister he was perfectly pleased. Said he, "God 
must have blown you here on purpose to help us in 
our meeting, for we are holding meetings in the 
Baptist church in town ; and now I want you to go 
with me to the meeting immediately, for you are 
needed there;" and without further words we went. 
Though the church had no pastor at that time, a 
visiting brother had been with them several evenings ; 
a good interest had begun, and all were pleased to 
see an accession of help. My visit was seasonable, 
for the church was weak, and they did indeed need 
help. I was ice-bound for eight days, during which 
time I labored diligently with the minister and the 
brethren, and saw about thirty souls added to the 
church. I then crossed the river in safety and went 
on my way home rejoicing, feeling the firm belief 
that the landlord's remark was true when he said 
that God must have blown me to W * * * on pur- 
pose. Experience, as well as Scripture, has taught 
me to count much on special providences. This is 
only one among many instances which have occurred 



172 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

in my ministry to confirm me in the belief. Many 
times have I felt the force of these almost inspired 
lines of Cowper : 

' ' God moves in a mysterious way, . 
His wonders to perform ; 
He plants his footsteps in the sea, 
And rides upon the storm. 

' ' Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take ; 
The clouds ye so much dread 
Are big with mercy, and shall break 
"With blessings on your head. 

41 Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, 
But trust him for his grace ; 
Behind a frowning providence 
He hides a smiling face. 

11 His purposes will ripen fast, 
Unfolding every hour ; 
The bud may have a bitter taste, 
But sweet will be the flower." 

As I neared my home, and thought back upon the 
gracious dealings of God to myself and many others, 
during this campaign against Satan's kingdom, my 
soul was inexpressibly happy. 

Though I had been out less than three months, I 
estimated that not less than two hundred and thirty 
souls had professed to have found hope in the 
various meetings in which I had been engaged. Be- 
sides this, the Presbyterian and Methodist churches 
in Rushville had been aroused by our meeting there, 
and they in turn had been instrumental in the con- 
version of a considerable number. It had been truly 



SUCCESS OF THE TOUR. 173 

a season of the right hand of the Most High. Though 
there are many of the converts whom I have not 
since been permitted to see, and years have passed 
since we wept and rejoiced together, my heart yet 
warms in remembrance of them, and I look forward 
with hope and comfort to a happy reunion, which I 
trust we shall enjoy in the fair climes of immortality, 

"Where congregations ne'er break up, 
And Sabbaths never end. 11 



CHAPTER XVII. 

GOES TO MISSOURI — MEETING IN THE TOWN OF W * * * 
— INCIDENT AT THE BAPTIZING OP A NEGRO — THE 
NEGRO'S POETRY — RELIGIOUS INTEREST AMONG THE 
SLAVES — A NEGRO SITS DOWN ON THE HOT STOVE — 
THE RESULT — MAKING AN AGREEMENT WITH HELL — 
WARNINGS — A STINGY COLLECTION — APOLOGIES — 
RETURNS HOME. 

Having remained at home about two weeks after 
my last return, I set out on foot for the State of 
Missouri, and the first night from home I stopped 
at the town of "W * * *, distant about twenty-five 
miles. There was a Baptist church there, of about 
two hundred members, some of whom were quite 
wealthy. I was informed that the money and prop- 
erty among them was worth not less than three 
hundred thousand dollars. They were very anxious 
for me to stop and hold a meeting with them, and I 
thought, as I had labored so much in destitute places 
where I received little or no pay for it, that in view 
of my poverty I had better do so ; for in the first 
place the church had no pastor at that time, and 
my help was much wanted ; and as the people were 
abundantly able, they would perhaps give me a good 
remuneration, which I very much needed. I accord- 
ingly held a meeting with them, in which I labored 



INCIDENT AT THE BAPTIZING OF A NEGRO. 175 

very hard for about twenty days. It pleased God 
to give us the victory, and we had a powerful revi- 
val. Fifty-three persons were baptized, and a good 
number professed conversion besides, who were not 
baptized. Many backsliders were reclaimed, the 
members were renewed in spirit, and a general 
reformation of feeling was produced throughout the 
community. Among the converts were some very 
interesting colored people. One of them, an old 
negro man, when being led into the water for bap- 
tism, requested permission to repeat a hymn he had 
learned. Permission being granted, he repeated it 
in the hearing of the people, greatly to his satisfac- 
tion. As I think it contains some good and plain 
gospel instruction, and is well worth the reading, 
the reader shall have it. It is as follows : 



■ Go read the third of Matthew, 

And read the chapter through; 
It is a guide to Christians, 

To tell them what to do. 
In those days came John Baptist, 

Into the wilderness, 
A preaching of the Gospel 

Of Jesus 1 righteousness. 

Then came to him the Pharisees, 

For to baptized be; 
But John forbade them, saying, 

Repentance bring with thee; 
Then I '11 baptize you freely, 

When you confess your sin, 
And own your Lord and Master, 

And tell how vile you've been. 



176 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

' c "When John was preaching Jesus, 

The all-atoning Lamb, 
He saw the blessed Saviour, 

And said, ' Behold the man 
Appointed of the Father 

To take away your sin, 
"When you believe in Jesus, 

And own him for your King.^ 

"Then came the blessed Saviour, 

For to baptized be: 
He was baptized in Jordan, 

The Scripture reads to me; 
He came out of the water — 

The Spirit from above 
Descends and lights on Jesus, 

In likeness of a dove. 

41 The heavens then were opened, 

As you may plainly see ; 
A witness to the people, 

That thus it ought to be. 
A voice from heaven proclaimed, 

'This is my only son; 
And I 'm well pleased with Jesus 

In all that he has done.' 

"All you who say you 've Jesus, 

Come, prove you have the Lord; 
Come, follow his example, 

Recorded in his Word. 
Take up your cross as freely 

As Jesus did for you. 
I leave you all to Jesus, 

And bid you all adieu. 11 

When the old negro had finished repeating this 
hymn, he was haptized and came up out of the 
water very happy. 



RELIGIOUS INTEREST AMONG THE SLAVES. 177 

There were thirty or forty slaves owned by the 
membership of the church, and they were remark- 
ably fond of attending the meetings. They seemed 
to think it a sad misfortune to miss a single night. 
Those who professed religion showed a warm and 
sincere attachment to the cause which it would have 
been well .for some of their masters to imitate. 
They were good natural singers, and when they 
were at meeting there was never any lack of music. 
Some of them had a gotfd share of native wit and 
talent; but being unlettered and unschooled, they 
made a great many ludicrous mistakes. During 
this meeting they often tested my gravity severely, 
and in some instances entirely overcame it. 

One evening, just before preaching, after the 
room had become well filled, and everybody seemed 
unusually quiet and solemn, a large, dull-looking 
negro man came into church. The seats were all 
full, and the space about the stove was occupied 
with those less fortunate hearers who were stand- 
ing. The negro, seeing no seat, pressed his way 
through, and took his position among the standers 
near the stove. Here he stood for a minute or 
more staring about the room, and, as I suppose, his 
attention was so completely absorbed in looking 
about at the people that he forgot himself and sat 
down upon the hot stove! His presence of mind 
returned instantly. I had no idea that he was 
active; but, dear! "Tell it not in Gath." He 
excelled any puppet show or ballet-dancer 'that 
could be found, for he was so active that it was as 
much as a bargain for the house to hold him. The 
8* 



178 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

crowd about him was suddenly set into a jostle, a 
space was cleared, and for one or two minutes lie 
jumped up and down, hallooing at the top of his 
voice, " Lor' a mercy ! Lor' a mercy !" 

The whole affair was so peculiarly ludicrous as to 
defy the most determined gravity ; and people and 
preachers were so overcome with laughter that it 
drove away all seriousness of feeling for the entire 
evening. The poor fellow was no doubt in some 
pain and much alarm, buk the affair was so laugh- 
able that pity and prudence plead in vain. 

Some occurrences connected with that meeting 
were of the most solemn character. I labored a 
great deal in the congregation, and through the 
community in conversations with individuals at 
their homes. In this way there came to my notice 
two young ladies and two young gentlemen, who, 
as I believe, made " a covenant with death." 

On learning something of their circumstances, it 
appeared that both couple were keeping company 
with prospects of marriage. I saw that they were 
convicted of their sins, and that I ought to press 
upon them the vast importance of seeking the mercy 
of Christ while it might be found, and the great 
danger of grieving the Holy Spirit forever away; 
but they were much inclined to levity and pleasure- 
seeking, and felt such a strong aversion for my 
interviews that they tried to avoid me. For this 
purpose they sought to disguise themselves by 
changing hats or bonnets, and various articles of 
dress. I still sought them out, however, and 
pleaded with them to yield to Christ; but so de- 



DYING WITHOUT HOPE. 179 

termined were they to live on in their folly, and 
resist the influences of the Spirit and the Word, 
that they covenanted together that rather than go 
to the anxious seat they would go to hell ! This was 
an awful covenant, and having heard of it I went to 
them again, and earnestly endeavored to show them 
its wickedness and folly, and besought them not to 
dare thus to trifle with God; but in spite of my 
utmost persuasion they continued obstinate. 

In a few weeks from that time the two young men 
were on their way to California, and while one of 
them was taking his gun from the wagon, its ham- 
mer caught against the side of the wagon-box, 
discharging the contents of the gun in his chest, 
and he died in few minutes. In a few days from 
that event, the other young man fell with his head 
under a wheel, and was killed instantly ! 

On the last Sabbath of the meeting, while I was 
preaching, a messenger came into the congregation, 
and walking up to the pulpit he whispered to me 
that Miss *'■*-*, who was one of the young ladies 
who had made the dreadful covenant, was dying, 
and wanted me to come and pray for her. I whis- 
pered to one of the deacons that he had better go 
immediately, but knowing the circumstances he 
begged to be excused, saying, "I would go, but 
somehow I have no heart or faith to pray for her." 
I dismissed the meeting and started upon the solemn 
errand as soon as I could, but when I arrived. she 
was a corpse ! In something over three months 
from this, the other young lady sickened and died 
also. 



180 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Thus, in less than four months from the time 
they made the rash vow together, they were all in 
their graves, and every o ae died without hope ! 
They had made "an agreement with hell," and 
a " covenant with death," that for the uncertain 
promise of a life of liberty in sin and folly, they 
would dare to brave the dangers of delay, and 
hazard the highest interests of their souls ! 

Reader, are you an impenitent sinner ? Beware ! 
Do not dare to trine with offered mercy ! Let these 
sad examples teach you a lesson never to be for- 
gotten. Hear what God has said to such cove- 
nant makers : "Your covenant with death shall 
be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall 
not stand ; when the overflowing scourge shall pass 
through, then ye shall be trodden down by it."* 

They banded together and strengthened each 
other in their rash purposes to drive off conviction, 
but says the Bible : " Though hand join in hand, 
the wicked shall not be unpunished, "f 

You may wonder, reader, that the deacon did not 
go and pray for that young lady, and I confess that 
his refusal was strange to me. I thought it a 
solemn matter for him to refuse, yet it was no more 
solemn than these words of John : " There is a 
sin unto death; I do not say that ye shall pray 
forit."J 

But I will now return to my personal narrative. 
As the time of my departure from Missouri drew 
near, there were many expi^ssions of sorrow among 

* Isa. xxviii : 18. f Pro v. xi : 21. \ 1 John v : 16. 



A STINGY COLLECTION. 181 

the people that I must so soon leave them. Fre- 
quent allusions were made to the prosperous and 
happy hours we had enjoyed together, and the faith- 
ful manner in which I had labored and preached 
the gospel among them ; and, indeed, I felt sad in 
prospect of leaving the place, as I always do where 
God has given me converts. It is natural for me to 
feel a warm attachment to those for whose salvation 
I have labored and prayed. 

On the last night of the meeting there was a 
general turn out to hear my farewell sermon, and 
all seemed to feel that we had the best of the wine 
at the last of the feast. I preached, gave them my 
parting counsel, and sat down. There was present 
with us that evening Brother C * * * , who was a 
minister, and a man of good sense and talent. 
"When my discourse was ended he arose, and in a 
happy style alluded to my earnest and successful 
labors among them. He then spoke of my poverty, 
self-denial, and the destitution of my family, and 
told the congregation that he hoped these things 
would be remembered when the hat was passed 
around for Brother Pickard. Finally he said: 
" Brethren and friends, you are able to contribute 
largely, for God has blessed you in the concerns of 
both earth and heaven, and I hope you will show 
your gratitude to God, and your kindness to Brother 
Pickard, by giving generously." The hat was then 
passed around while a hymn was being sung. The 
collection was counted, and lo ! it amounted to two 
dollars and thirty cents. I felt somewhat disap- 



182 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

pointed that this should be the reward of three 
weeks of hard labor, but said nothing. 

"When the money had been counted, Brother 
C * * * ordered the congregation to stop singing. 
He then told the people the amount of the contri- 
bution, and openly said that they ought to be 
ashamed of themselves. Said he, " Brother Pickard 
is here by your solicitation. He has labored hard, 
and has honestly earned one hundred dollars. You 
justly owe it, his family needs it, and he ought to 
have it." From this he struck fire, and poured it 
out upon them for several minutes, with wit, satire, 
and eloquence, rebuking their parsimoniousness, 
until they were so completely flagellated that I 
thought if I had wished for revenge for my treat- 
ment, which I did not, I should have been more 
than satisfied. I fancied that every one present 
was ashamed that he was there. I never heard an 
appeal before or since, of a similar character, so 
full of sarcastic power. I really felt sorry for the 
brethren, and was glad when he stopped. 

One brother then arose, blundered out a few 
apologies, and concluded by saying that he did not 
know that Brother Pickard was preaching for 
money. These apologies Brother C * * * answered 
in short order, and starting around with a subscrip- 
tion paper he urged every one to sign it. When 
this effort was done, he handed me the paper, which 
footed up seven dollars and twenty cents. This I 
returned to the people telling them that it was of 
no use to me, as I should be out of the State before 
another, night. The next day I was left to plod my 



RETURNS HOME. 183 

way home on foot. This ill-usage cut keenly upon 
my feelings at the time, for I was very needy. My 
only decent pantaloons had been worn out at the 
knees at that meeting, in laboring and praying for 
the anxious. My hat had become seedy, my boots 
leaky, and my scanty purse exhausted. My sorrow, 
however, was of short duration; my mind turned 
from this to think of the many mercies of God 
toward me. I fell to singing spiritual songs, became 
extremely happy, and went home rejoicing. 

I relate this circumstance to show how sorely 
ministers are sometimes tried, hoping that if any 
should read it who have niggardly habits in respect 
to supporting the gospel, it may cause them to think 
of their duty to those servants who labor for their 
highest welfare. In justice to the Baptists I must 
remark, however, that there are few such churches. 
This one was an exception. I believe that there are 
as many noble, generous spririts among the Baptists 
at the present time, as there are in any order of 
Christians in our country; and though there are 
others who may be equally good, I love my breth- 
ren better than any other class of men on earth. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

MEETING AT A* * * — DULL PROSPECTS — REVIVAL — 
SCENE AT A BAPTISM — A NOVEL WEDDING — WHO 
SHOULD HAVE THE MARRIAGE FEES — THOUGHTS ON 
BAPTISM — A DIAGRAM — CHURCH GOVERNMENT. 

On getting home from my Missouri meeting, I was 
much worn by the labors of the winter, but the 
stern demands of want allowed no time for rest. I 
immediately set about gathering supplies for my 
family, who were destitute of wood, flour, groceries, 
and almost the necessaries of life. After working 
at home two weeks, to replenish our store, I went 
to the town of A * * * , the place of a county-seat 
on the Mississippi, to hold a meeting. There was 
no Baptist interest there at the time, and I obtained 
the use of the court-house, in which I preached 
three weeks. It was the breaking up of winter, and 
the streets and roads were very bad. The mud was 
so deep that I saw one team stick in the middle of 
a street. The bad going was thought by the people 
generally an excellent excuse for not coming to 
meeting; in fact, they considered it altogether 
impracticable, for that reason, to attend. For a 
week or more the prospect looked gloomy enough, 
but we managed to get a few out. To these we 
continued perseveringly to preach and exhort, and 



A BAPTISMAL SCENE. 185 

earnestly besought the Lord to give us victory. At 
length some of the few hearers began to seek for 
mercy. From this an interest went out through 
the town, and the people soon found plenty of ways 
and means to come in and crowd the court-room. 
The mud now seemed scarcely an impediment. 
Conversions occurred every day, the meeting went 
on gloriously, and finally resulted in the organization 
of a promising Baptist church. 

On the occasion of our last baptism, as the audi- 
ence were going to that noble baptistry, the " Father 
of Waters," to witness the ordinance, the first up- 
river steamer for the season hove in sight, and 
landed at the point where we stopped, with about 
three hundred souls on board, to witness the cere- 
monies. The captain requested all on the boat to 
keep the most respectful silence, which was done 
with an appearance of becoming reverence. The 
converts, about fourteen in number, were then laid 
in the watery grave. At the close of the exercises, 
the captain, crew, and passengers were remembered, 
with the rest of the congregation, in prayer. The 
morning was so clear and charming that it increased 
the solemn beauty of the scene, and made it delight- 
ful to witness. Some of the passengers on the boat 
were heard to remark that it was the most solemn 
and impressive sight they had ever beheld, 

"While I was at A * * *, a happy couple stepped 
up to the desk, one evening, just as I had dismissed 
the congregation, and requested me to unite them 
in marriage. They were taking rather a late start 
in wedlock. The groom was seventy-two and the 



186 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

bride sixty-eight years old. Their request surprised 
and confused me at first, but recollecting the sub- 
stance of an old Quaker marriage ceremony, I 
pressed it into service, and 

"Joined them in that silken tie 
Which binds two willing hearts." 

The groom, who seemed wonderfully pleased with 
his new state, generously gave me one dollar and 
fifty cents ; which, for the times, was liberal indeed. 
Though I had been in the ministry a number of 
years, this was the first couple I ever married. 
People then commonly had the unfair custom of 
not only allowing the minister to preach, travel, 
visit sick beds and attend the funerals of the 
country, gratis, but of adding to this neglect the 
aggravation of sneaking off to the squire, or some 
other civil functionary, to pay him their marriage 
fee. I will just say here, that I am glad, for the 
sake of the poor ministers, that this way of doing is 
getting out of style. Ministers do more gratuitous 
labor than any other class of men, and a common 
sense of justice should certainly secure to them the 
marrying patronage. 

At the close of the meeting an old lady gave me 
nine yards of calico for a dress-pattern for my wife. 
This, with the marriage fee, was the sum of my 
receipts for the three weeks' labor. 

As the topic of baptism has been suggested by 
the impressive scene at the steamboat landing, I 
will here venture to offer a few thoughts and facts 



TESTIMONY RESPECTING IMMERSION. 187 

relative to it, though, it may be at the expense of 
Bonie digression. 

The apostolic mode 6 of baptism by immersion has 
an impressive solemnity to the spectator which no 
other mode can have. When some of the passen- 
gers on the steamer declared, of our last baptismal 
occasion at A * * *, that it was the most solemn 
and impressive sight they had ever beheld, they but 
repeated what has been felt and said thousands 
of times. I have seldom, if ever, administered the 
ordinance without hearing more or less declarations 
of that character. There are but few sights upon 
which the eyes may look which are so well calcu- 
lated tp affect the heart. Hundreds of living wit- 
nesses can testify, to-day and forever, that their first 
alarm for their souls occurred while looking at the 
impressive sight of converts being buried in the 
baptismal grave. Many cases of the kind have 
occurred under my own observation. In my meet- 
ings I have noticed that a baptism usually gives 
new interest, and I have often counted more upon 
such occasions, in arresting the attention of the 
careless, than upon a good sermon. God thus 
speaks through his own appointed ordinance. This 
fact highly favors the doctrine that immersion is 
the only scriptural mode of baptism, and is one of 
the very strongest of presumptive arguments, for 
the same cannot be said of other modes. Again : I 
have conversed with hundreds of persons who have 
been sprinkled or poured, who have been more or 
less dissatisfied with their baptism, so called, and I 
have immersed scores of such persons at their re- 



188 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

quest, and received them into the Baptist churches ; 
but never in my life have I known of a person who 
had received the ordinance by immersion and after- 
ward doubted that he had been baptized. This 
shows very clearly which way the finger-board of 
conscience points, and is a fact which to me speaks 
upon the subject with convicting power. The sure 
and firm growth of the Baptist denomination for 
the last three hundred years is perhaps attributable 
in a large degree, by the blessing of God, to this 
fact, that when a person is once a Baptist he is sat- 
isfied with Baptist doctrines, and can seldom be 
persuaded to change them or change his church 
relation for another. On the other hand, the Baptist 
denomination in the United States has for a number 
of years back been receiving by immigration mem- 
bers from the different Pedo-Baptist churches at the 
rate of two thousand a year, and it has been re- 
ceiving ministers from the same source, at the rate 
of one for every week in the year.* This is a church 
immigration which has never been heard of except 
in this instance. During one year of my ministry I 
kept an account of the number I baptized of those 
who had been previously sprinkled or poured, and 
it amounted to fifty-seven persons. I have baptized 
a greater or less number of that class every year 
since I was ordained. All these, of course, were 
received into the Baptist church. 

Again: the fact that our Pedo-Baptist brethren 
have kept preaching so much on baptism is good 

* History of Baptist Denomination. 



THOUGHT ON BAPTISM. 189 

evidence that they are conscious, themselves, that 
their theory on that subject is one of the weak points 
in their creeds. Hence their greater uneasiness 
about that point and their disposition to bestow upon 
it the more care. I will not suppose that there is 
such a want of charity on their part that they do it 
simply for the purpose or with the desire to tear us 
down. I believe that I may safely affirm, as the 
result of extensive acquaintance, that in the States 
of Illinois and Iowa there have been five sermons 
preached against our views on baptism, communion, 
etc., where there has been one preached for their 
support, and yet this immigration still keeps coming 
into our churches. The reason why Baptists now- 
a-days preach less on baptism than other denomina- 
tions is, that they are so confident in the strength 
of their position that they feel more at ease. 

I have not space to dwell upon the subject of 
baptism in this book, but I will simply point the 
inquiring reader to a few scripture passages, sug- 
gest a safe rule by which the different views on the 
subject may be criticised, and dismiss it with the 
recommendation that he " search the Scriptures," to 
know the will of God, not only in this but in all 
things. 

If the word sprinkle or pour means baptism, it will 
make good sense if you substitute either one of those 
words for the word baptism. So of the word immer- 
sion, when substituted for the word baptism, if it be 
borne in mind that to immerse, according to "Web- 
ster's Unabridged Dictionary, is to bury — to over- 
whelm — to involve, or to deeply engage in. The 



190 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

word baptism is often used in a figurative sense : for 
example — Matt, iii: 11 — " He shall baptize you 
with the Holy Ghost." "Where the word is used 
thus, one of the figurative words corresponding with 
immersion should be used instead of the word im- 
mersion. Thus: "He shall overwhelm you with the 
Holy Ghost." 

To give a clearer idea of the figurative words 
which correspond with the word immersion, or which 
present the likeness of immersion by a different 
figure, we might say of a person that he is immersed 
in the affairs of life, deeply engaged in business, in- 
volved in the concerns of state, overwhelmed in 
sorrow, or that his name is buried in oblivion. It 
would mean the same thing if we should say that 
he is immersed in the affairs of life, immersed in 
business, immersed in the concerns of state, im- 
mersed in sorrow, or that his name is immersed in 
oblivion ; yet, according to modern taste, the former 
mode of expression, by preventing repetition, would 
be more elegant, and hence is more used. This is 
enough to show that these words do present a figur- 
ative likeness to the word immersion, and that they 
may be used interchangeably with it. I shall so use 
one of them in the diagram which I shall present. 
In reading the common translation of the New. Tes- 
tament on this subject, we are not accommodated 
with these words of figurative likeness, but the 
simple word baptism is used with reference to things 
literal and things not literal. It is comprehensive 
in its meaning and varied in its application, and it 
is left to the discriminating judgment of the reader 



ON BAPTISM. 191 

to find its exact shade of meaning by the relative 
position which it occupies in any given place. By 
allowing the same liberty in the use of the equiva- 
lent word, immersion, it will make precisely the same 
sense as does the word baptism, if it should be substi- 
tuted for it, in every place where it occurs in the 
Bible. This fact any one may know for himself by 
taking the pains to test it with the Scriptures. But 
the same cannot possibly be said of the word 
sprinkle, or pour. "We will now try this plan of sub- 
stitution in the following. 



192 



AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 



DIAGRAM 



Mark i : 4. 



Mark iii : 16. 



John iii : 



Acts viii : 38. 



Col. ii : 12. 



Luke xii : 50. 



Gal. iii : 27. 



Matt, xx : 22. 



Acts xix : 4, 5. 



Rom. vi : 4. 



Common translation, 



John did baptize in 
the wilderness, and 
preach the baptism of 
repentance, for the re 
mission of sins. 

And Jesus, when he 
was baptized, went up 
straightway out of the 
water. 

John also was bap 
tizing in iEnon, near 
to Salem, because 
there was much water 
there ; and they came, 
and were baptized. 

And they went down 
into the water, both 
Philip and the eun 
uch, and he baptized 
him. And when they 
were come up out 
the water, etc. 

Buried with him in 
baptism, wherein ye 
are also risen with him 

I have a baptism to 
be baptized with, and 
how am I straitened 
until it be accom- 
plished. 

For as many of you 
have been baptized 

into Christ, have put 

on Christ. 

Are ye able to drink 
of the cup that I shall 
drink of, and to be 
baptized with the bap- 
tism that I am bap- 
tized with? 



The word sprinkle 
substituted for the 

word BAPTISM.* 



Then said Paul, John 
verily baptized with 
the baptism of repent- 
ance. When they 
heard this, they were 



John did sprinkle in 
the wilderness, and 
preach the sprinkling 
of repentance, for the 
remission of sins, 

And Jesus, when he 
was sprinkled, went 
up straightway out of 
the water. 

John also was sprink- 
ling in iEnon, near to 
Salem, because there 
was much water there ; 
and they came, and 
were sprinkled. 

And they went down 
into the water, both 
Philip and the eun- 
uch, and he sprinkled 
him. And when they 
were come up out of 
the water, etc. 

Buried with him in 

sprinkling, wherein ye 
are also risen with him. 

I have a-sprinkling 
to be sprinkled with, 
and how am I strait- 
ened until it be accom- 
plished. 

For as many of you 
as have been sprinkled 
nto Christ, have put 
on Christ. 

Are ye able to drink 
of the cup that 1 shall 
drink of, and to be 
sprinkled with the 
sprinkling that I 
' "with? 



The word immersion, 
or its words of like- 
ness, substituted for 
the word baptism. 



John did immerse in 
in the wilderness, and 
preach the overwhelm- 
ing of repentance, for 
the remission of sins. 



And Jesus, when he 
was immersed, went 
up straightway out of 
the water. 

John also was im- 
mersing in iEnon, near 
to Salem, because there 
was much water there ; 
and they came, and 
were immersed. 

And they went down 
into the water, both 
Philip and the eunuch, 
and he immersed him. 
And when they were 
come up out of the 
water, etc. 

Buried with him in 
immersion, wherein ye 
are also risen with him. 

I have an immer- 
sion to be overwhelm- 
ed with, and how am I 
straitened until it be 
accomplished. 

For as many of you 
as have been immersed 
into Christ, have put 
on Christ. 

Are ye able to drink 
of the cup that I shall 
rink of, and be im- 
mersed with the im- 
mersion I am to be 
overwhelmed with ? 



Then said Paul, John 
verily sprinkled with 
the sprinkling of re- 
pentance. When they 

heard this, they were heard this, they were 
baptized in the" name sprinkled in the name immersed in the name 
of the Lord Jesus. of the Lord Jesus. of the Lord Jesus 



Then said Paul, John 
verily immersed with 
the overwhelming of 
epentance.When they 



Therefore we are 
buried with him by 
baptism. 



Therefore we are 
buried with him by 
sprinkling. 



Therefore we are 
buried with him by 

immersion. 



CHURCH GOVERNMENT. 193 

Having spoken of the steady success of Baptist 
principles, it is worthy of notice that the political 
revolutions which have heen going on in the world 
for the past few years have not only called the 
attention of the people to consider what is the best 
and safest form of civil government, but, with this, 
more interest has been taken with reference to what 
is the true church government. The model of our 
present civil government was suggested to Thomas 
Jefferson while at a Baptist meeting, watching the 
administration of its church government. f The 
ordeal of the past has convinced Americans, at least, 
more firmly than ever, that the republican form of 
civil government is the only just and true one ; and 
many are becoming convinced that the same is true 
of church government. Americans naturally love 
soul-liberty. This is bringing many of them into 
the Baptist churches, and will yet bring many more. 



* I here use the word sprin7cle, because sprinkling is more commonly practiced, 
but I recommend the reader to try the word pcnw, also, as a substitute, in the same 
way, or any words that may have a likeness to sprinkle or pour. 

f See History of Baptist Denomination. 



CHAPTEK XIX. 

HARD TIMES — MEETING IN A CABIN — THE OLD BAPTIST 
AND HIS DOGS — THOUGHTS ON BUILDING MEETING- 
HOUSES — REVIVAL AT S* * * — A HARD PLACE — 
DISTURBANCE — HOLDING MOCK COMMUNION WITH A 
BOTTLE OF WHISKEY — IMPUDENCE OF A ROWDY — 
CONFUSION OF A YOUNG SQUIRE — THE REASON WHY 
DONKEYS ARE SCARCE — THREATS OF PERSONAL VIO- 
LENCE — MOVEMENTS OF A REVEREND SCHOOL-TEACHER 
— HIS BUILDING BURNED — A MAN THREATENS TO 
SHOOT — TESTIMONY RESPECTING IMMERSION — SAD 
AFFLICTION — FARMING. 

On returning from the meeting at A * * * my family 
was in a poor condition. My wife was sick, and I 
was so much exhausted with revival labors that I 
was in a poor condition for manual labor; but the 
Lord recovered us both to good health and spirits. 
This spring I moved on the farm of Brother H * * *, 
who was to furnish me with a team, and give me 
one half the crop. During the summer I lived as 
usual, working six days in the week on the farm, 
and preaching once or twice usually each Sabbath, 
at some destitute place. 

When my crop was raised the corn was worth ten 
cents a bushel, wheat fifty, pork from one dollar 
and thirty to one dollar and fifty per hundred, and I 



HAKD TIMES. 195 

lived so far from market that it was more than it 
was worth to get the grain marketed. You may be 
sure we had hard times ; but I gathered the crops, 
did the best I could with them, and prepared for 
another winter's campaign against Satan's kingdom. 
This was in 1849. In the fall a Brother T * * * 
came from Missouri in person, and earnestly urged 
me to go to a certain community in that State, dis- 
tant about thirty miles, to hold a meeting. After he 
had helped me to get up a few loads of wood, we set 
out together on those old-fashioned chariots which 
have neither wheels nor horses. The first snow 
had just fallen, and the roads were so slushy and 
slippery that our tramp was very fatiguing. On 
getting to the Des Moines river we only succeeded 
in crossing with the greatest difficulty. At night 
we found a cabin near the river, where we gratefully 
received free hospitality. The next day we finished 
our journey, and stopped at the place where Brother 
T * * * thought that a meeting was so much needed. 
I thought it a dull prospect. It was a very rude 
cabin. The region was thinly settled, and the pro- 
prietor of the cabin, who claimed to be a Baptist, 
was the only one in the settlement from whom we 
might hope for any encouragement. These things, 
however, would not have been so forbidding -to us if 
our host had been a warm Christian, but this he was 
not — he was a poor representative. He received 
us very coldly, and conducted himself during our 
stay as though he thought that preachers were a 
necessary evil. He had a couple of big, ugly mas- 
tiff dogs, which took a large share of his attention, 



196 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and he seemed to think far more of them than he 
did of us. "We circulated notice of a meeting, and 
preached in his cabin that evening to sixteen per- 
sons. I would have left the next morning but for 
Brother T * * *, who was still hopeful that we 
should do much good, and we decided that as we 
had taken such a hard tramp to get there, we would 
hold on a few evenings, at all events. 

Our Baptist man could not allow us to hold meet- 
ings in the day-time at his house, because it made 
his dogs cross and would not answer. But greater 
ills were in store ; for finally, on the third day of our 
stay, the man's pet dogs got to fighting, and when 
their affectionate master went to part them, one of 
them turned upon him and bit him severely. In- 
stead of thrashing or killing his nasty dogs, as he 
should have done, he laid all the blame for the mis- 
fortune upon the meeting, and said that it brought 
so many strangers around that it was making his 
dos;s cross and would be the ruination of them. 
After this, he was so crusty toward us that we gave 
up the meeting as hopeless, and left the next morn- 
ing. I thought our old Baptist was treated right, 
for he was making an idol of his dogs, and was 
worshiping them more than he did his God. But 
his punishment worked no repentance, and by his 
unfaithfulness we had all our tramping and toiling 
for nought, and were obliged to leave him in as 
much coldness and poverty of soul as when we found 
him, to raise up his family without religion, amidst 
a Godless, Christless set of neighbors. 

I have related this partly as an example of the 



BUILDING MEETING-HOUSES. 197 

trials of pioneer ministers, but more particularly as 
a warning to any of our brethren who may now live 
in a churchless community, or who will hereafter 
settle in a new country. Had this professed Baptist 
but done his duty, and appreciated the day of his 
merciful visitation, a Baptist church would probably 
have been organized there which would have been 
a blessing to himself and family, and all his neigh- 
bors, as long as they lived — a blessing, the value of 
which dollars and cents could not estimate. There 
are now many places in the West, even in Illinois 
and Iowa, where there are two, or three, or more, 
Baptist families destitute of the blessings of church 
relation, who, if they were only awake, might hold 
prayer-meetings, employ some evangelist to hold a 
protracted meeting of two or three weeks, and join- 
ing with him in an earnest and faithful effort for 
God, might see a church raised up among them, 
and their neighbors brought to Christ. All the 
effort and expense it might cost them would make 
them no poorer: it would enhance the value of their 
property; it would be of inestimable benefit to their 
children ; and, above all, it would make them richer 
for the life to come. If any such brother should 
read this book, I pray him to arouse and make an 
effort tQ, build a Zion of God in his community. 
Many of our churches which do exist owe their 
origin and advancement, under God, to the piety 
and enterprise of some one family or one person 
who lived in the locality where they were organized. 
May God grant to raise up many more such breth- 
ren and such churches. Instances might be cited 



198 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

where even a sister has been the chief promoter of a 
church, and that not only of its organization, but the 
building of a house of worship. Spiritual stupor 
and a want of pious enterprise are the curse of some 
and a great impediment to the common cause. 
Pious enterprise is what the cause needs ; without 
it we shall be as trees without fruit — with it we 
shall be " terrible as an army with banners." 

Leaving my crusty brother to take care of his 
dogs, I pushed out for W * * * , in Missouri, where 
I tarried over night. In the morning I started for 
the town of S * * * , on the Des Moines river. A 
deep snow had fallen during the night, and the 
walking was slavish. I several times lay down in 
the snow with weariness, but I finished my journey, 
though it was too late to circulate a notice and have 
a meeting. 

The next night I preached. Only five persons 
were present, but I was urged by two or three of 
them to remain and hold a protracted meeting. 
The town of S * * * contained only about eight hun- 
dred souls, but it supported a number of whiskey 
shops, and was a perfect devil's nest — a complete 
sink of iniquity. I held the meeting in the town 
school-house, a place which would seat about three 
hundred hearers. Few were out the second night, 
but every night after that the house was crowded. 

The work of the Spirit was soon manifest. Be- 
lievers were quickened, and sinners were made to 
seek for mercy. No sooner did sinners begin to 
inquire, than the devil, as he commonly does on 
such occasions, commenced his work of finding 



A MOCK COMMUNION. 199 

fault with the doctrines preached, the character of 
the meeting, and everything possible connected 
with the revival. He tried various expedients to 
hinder the work ; but as wicked devices increased 
with some, religious interest increased with others. 
"-"Where sin abounded, grace did much more 
abound;" yet the wicked seemed determined to 
do their utmost to throw the meetings into disorder. 
The roughs finally went so far with their insults 
that they brought a bottle of whiskey with them 
into the congregation, and held a mock communion 
with it during divine service. When the bottle was 
emptied, a young man, as if to complete the impu- 
dence, held it up and waved it about his head in 
the sight of the whole assembly. At this I gave 
him a sharp rebuke, and calling out to him, I said, 
" Put up that bottle immediately, sir, or I will arrest 
you." But he did not do it, and I threatened again. 
The roughs then became very disorderly ; some of 
the people began to be clamorous against the insult, 
and I was obliged to dismiss the meeting as quick 
as possible, to prevent it from breaking up in a 
general row. On consultation with a few friends 
as to the question of arresting the disturber, they 
said that if I attempted it, it would be a profitless 
undertaking, for the reason that the magistrate and 
all the civil officers of the place were of the same 
character, and would privately sympathize with 
them. I then decided to make no prosecutions, but 
go on with the meeting and trust to Providence for 
a successful issue. As no arrests were made it 



200 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

encouraged them in their wickedness, and the next 
night they behaved as badly as ever. 

There was a young magistrate present that night, 
and he was one who thought he knew about all that 
was worth knowing. He professed to be a Presby- 
terian, but I suppose he must have had a poor 
standing. However, after I dismissed, this knowing 
individual requested the congregation to tarry, 
while he asked the preacher a few questions. The 
people took their seats again, and he began thus : 
"I wish to know by what authority, sir, you say 
that these young gentlemen and ladies are on the 
road to hell ?" I allowed him to proceed, and he 
asked several other questions in a disrespectful way, 
about certain doctrines I had preached. When he 
had exhausted his inquiries, I answered him by 
saying, " Have you no Bible, sir, that you are 
ignorant of these things ? If you have not, some 
well-disposed person ought to give you one. In 
answer to your first question, I can tell you that if 
you should ever have a Bible and read it, you will 
see that the Lord Jesus Christ says to the Pharisees, 
* How can ye escape the damnation of hell V And, 
sir, in my opinion, you are the very man who ought 
to take a lively interest in that question, for how 
shall you escape ?" This gave me good opportunity 
to apply the anathemas of the gospel. I took those 
words as a text, and preached a short sermon 
especially for his benefit. The Lord gave me good 
use of my tongue, and I told him of the threaten- 
ings of the divine law against the disobedient and 
guilty, with a vengeance ; and referring to the 



CONFUSION OF A YOUNG SQUIRE. 201 

manner in which, after having been chosen by the 
citizens to promote law and order, he had come into 
an assembly of free people with the avowed purpose 
of interfering with the progress of the revival, I 
warned him to beware lest judgment should over- 
take him, and soon show him more about hell than 
he really wanted to know. The tide of feeling was 
soon so turned against him that he went off enraged 
and mortified. After this the young squire was a 
target for the wit of all the wags and saucy boys in 
town, and whenever they would meet him upon 
the street they would ask him such questions as — 
" Squire, has no one given you a Bible yet?" Or, 
"Did you never own a Bible, Squire ?" Or, " Squire, 
have you found out anything more about hell, yet?" 
Or another would call out, " Squire, they say you 
have had a call to preach; is that so?" "Where 
do you hold your next meeting, Squire ?" etc. Thus 
the man was nicely caught in his own trap, and so 
completely bored that I presume he wished a hun- 
dred times he had minded his own business, and I 
will warrant that he never tried to show off in a 
similar way again. 

He was nearly as badly done for as another certain 
squire I once heard of, who, I think, must have 
been some relation to this one. He was very fond 
of picking at professors and ministers. One day 
he fell in company with a minister, and, as usual, 
began to find fault with the ways of the church and 
kingdom. 

Finally said he to the minister, who was riding a 
?ery fine horse : 
9* 



202 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

" It seems to me that you preachers now-a-days 
are getting so proud that you don't try to imitate 
your master." 

" How is that?" said the preacher. 

"Why" said the squire, "we read that Christ 
rode on a jackass, but preachers now must have fine 
horses." 

"You are right," said the preacher. "It is. a 
lamentable fact, but it can't be helped ; for the truth 
is, the people in these days have used all the jack- 
asses to make squires of!" 

The next move made by the rowdies was an at- 
tempt to get out a writ to arrest me, on the charge 
of slander. This was because I had publicly told 
them of their wickedness and rascality ; but, finding 
they could do nothing at that, some of them agreed 
together, as I afterwards learned, to attack me per- 
sonally. This was to be done on a certain night, as 
I would pass out at the door ; but before the time 
came for the attack to be made, the Lord magnified 
the hazard of the attempt in their eyes to such a 
degree, that the leading spirit of the clique declared 
that he would have nothing more to do with it. Said 
he to his companions, "You had better take my 
advice, and let the job go. That Pickard is a dan- 
gerous man to quarrel with ; just notice the look of 
his eye and you will see it so. Just watch his 
motions and appearance : he is built from the ground 
up; and mind you, if we get into trouble with him 
he will not stop at trifles ; mark my word for it, 
you had better let him alone." Though they might 
easily have overpowered me, they deferred, through 



THREATS OF PERSONAL VIOLENCE. 203 

fe?\ of what might be the result, to take further 
counsel. In the mean time the leading spirit among 
them fell at the foot of the cross for mercy, and 
sought the Lord with all his heart. This gave a 
new turn to affairs, and took the rest by surprise. 
Soon another one of the number was convicted; 
better thoughts began to occupy their attention, and 
it was not long before every one of the clique that 
had thus threatened to do me bodily injury was 
hopefully converted to God! They generally be- 
came faithful Christians, and one of them is at this 
time a minister of the gospel. Thus did God main- 
tain his own cause, and make the wrath of man to 
praise him. 

The gospel, however, must ever work its way 
through opposition. When this difficulty was dis- 
posed of a new one came up. There was a kind of 
apostate Presbyterian minister in the place, who was 
trying to teach a high school. He was very much 
dissatisfied with the meeting, and gave lectures to 
his pupils every morning, to prejudice them against 
it, and prevent them from going to the anxious seat 
to seek religion. He took the position that the idea 
of regeneration was nonsense, and taught that infant 
baptism and a moral life were sufficient. He told 
them that it was a shame and a disgrace to 2:0 to an 
anxious seat, and that he very much hoped that none 
of his pupils would think of doing such a thing. 

An old deacon, who was attending my meeting, 
having heard how the teacher was trying to impress 
his pupils, sent word to him that he would pay him 
twenty dollars for his trouble if he would attend the 



204 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Baptist meeting regularly every night while it lasted, 
and listen carefully to the preaching; but this he 
would not do. Though he could neither be coaxed 
nor hired to come near the meeting, he continued to 
work very diligently against the revival, especially 
among the young people, and caused us a great deal 
of trouble and uneasiness. AYe felt his evil influence 
so deeply that we at length prayed earnestly that 
God would either convert him, or otherwise get him 
out of the way of sinners, that he might not prevent 
their salvation in that community. 

He had in his possession a fine school building, 
and was thought to be permanently located. Our 
prayers were not answered during the meeting, 
though thev were not Ions; after. This was done in 
a way we would not have chosen, and by a process 
we did not expect. His building took fire in open 
daylight, as was supposed, by sparks from a stove- 
pipe, which caught in the roof, and was not discov- 
ered until it was too late to save the building, which 
was soon burned to the ground. The poor sinner 
was insolvent, and ran away to escape his creditors. 
Whether or not this was a judgment of Heaven 
upon him, for fighting against the work of God, 
others may judge. 

During the meeting a Mrs. M* * *, the wife of a 
wicked man, was converted and wished to be bap- 
tized. The husband sent me word that if I attempt- 
ed to baptize his wife he would shoot me, and that 
I might fully depend upon it. This seemed a hard 
case, but I felt that it was my duty — that God 
commanded it, and that I should obey God rather 



A MAN THREATENS TO SHOOT. 205 

than man. The woman was very anxious to be 
baptized, and I determined to do it if it cost me 
my life. I did not expect to get killed, for I thought 
upon the promise in the great commission : " Lo, I 
am with you always, even unto the end of the 
world." 

On the next Sabbath I had about twenty persons 
to baptize. We opened a baptistry through the ice 
in the Des Moines river. The day of the baptism 
was beautiful, and as we gathered upon the bank the 
Spirit was present. During the introductory exer- 
cises of singing and prayer, I became so happy that 
I forgot all about the shooting business, nor did I 
think of it until after a part of the converts had been 
baptized, when, as I happened to look up the river, 
I saw the man walking up and down along the bank 
with a gun in his hand. The threat had been so 
positive that the sight somewhat confused me. I 
felt fearful for a moment; but I mentally prayed to 
God for courage and protection, and went forward 
with my duties. I baptized the rest of the candi- 
dates, including his wife ; but he did not shoot. 
He went home angry and ashamed. This was the 
third company of converts I had baptized during the 
meeting; and although the water was cold, the man's 
wife was not injured, nor did a single one even take 
cold ; they were the better for it, by their obedience. 
It is a fact worth noticing, that while the lives of 
ministers have been threatened hundreds of times, 
they have rarely ever been murdered in America. 
In some instances they have received bodily injury, 
yet I do not remember having heard of more than one 



206 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

minister being killed in this country within the last 
hundred years, except in connection with the rebel- 
lion, for preaching too plainly to the wicked. One 
was killed, I am told, in an early day in Cincinnati. 
The statement is, that a Baptist elder, who had been 
preaching in a saw-mill, was struck on his head with 
a large stone and killed, while returning from-meet- 
ing at night, by a young man who was enraged at 
his plain dealing, and who had concealed himself 
behind a fence and threw at him purposely. 

After this baptism I was sent for by my wife to 
attend to a calamity at home, and thus suddenly 
ended the meeting. As I have an important testi- 
mony to give in regard to immersion, I will give it 
here. As you will see by this book, I have im- 
mersed hundreds of people. I have administered 
the ordinance in all kinds of weather — in cold, heat, 
and rain ; and though the greater part of this has 
been done in the winter, often when the ice had to 
be cut, I have never known of a single instance 
where an individual's health has been in the least 
injured in receiving the ordinance of baptism by 
immersion. On the contrary, I have known several 
cases where feeble persons were improved in health 
by the watery burial. One most remarkable case of 
the kind will be found .in this volume. There are 
some who often argue that to require baptism by 
immersion is unreasonable, because, they say, it 
often endangers the health ; but facts are stubborn 
things, and to all such persons I will but say that 
the facts just given are my answer to their argument. 

The circumstance which called me from the meet- 



SAD AFFLICTION. 207 

ing at S * * * was-^n accident which, befell one of my 
little boys, then about one year and a half old. He 
fell into the fire and burned his face horribly. It 
was a calamity, indeed, the mark of which he will 
carry to his grave. This affliction, combined with 
pecuniary embarrassment, kept me at home during 
the remainder of the winter. As no one had given 
me a shilling for the labors of my tour, I returned 
utterly pennyless to face doctors' bills and many 
other worldly perplexities. It may be supposed that 
it was in part my own fault that I so seldom received 
anything for my ministerial labors, because I did 
not demand it; but in those places where my work 
was most needed, and where I more commonly went, 
society had such an abhorrence of the idea of paying 
a preacher, that if he should say anything about it 
he would make ten enemies where he would get one 
dollar. Many would then take it for granted that 
he was too lazy to work, and had taken to preaching 
as an easier way to get money. It was almost neces- 
sary for him to labor for nothing, in order to con- 
vince them that he had the good of souls at heart. 
Ministers of all kinds were obliged to endure these 
things. There are yet some destitute places in the 
"West of that kind, but the great improvement that 
has been made in this particular is truly wonderful. 
During the following summer I remained on Bro. 
H * * * 's farm at the former terms, usually preaching 
at some place on the Sabbath as before. 



CHAPTER XX. 

VISIT AT R * * * AND L * * * — JOYS — MEETING AT 

M * * * EXPERIENCE WITH THE DANCERS VISITING 

— SEXTON WORK — CONFESSIONS OF THE BRETHREN — 
IMMENSE FEELING A TIME OF POWER THE COLLEC- 
TION — ABOLITIONISM — PREACHING IN A BAR-ROOM — 

RETURN HOME TAKES THE SMALL POX EXTREME 

SUFFERING — THOUGHTS ON JOB'S AFFLICTIONS — 
DOCTORS' BILLS. 

Early in the winter of 1850 I visited my friends 
and acquaintances in the town of R * * *, in S * * * 
county, Illinois, where I had held a meeting two 
years before. Here I enjoyed a rich feast of soul 
with the converts. As evidence of their growth in 
grace, they had built a good house of worship, and 
the church was in a prosperous condition. Some of 
the converts, who were not there, I learned had died 
happy and gone home to heaven. Some had removed 
to other parts ; but those who remained were stead- 
fast, and greatly rejoiced with me in our reunion. 
As I heard them tell of their trials and triumphs, 
their confidence in God, and fair prospects of a 
happy heaven, my soul fluttered with joy. Sordid 
gold could not have purchased me such comfort as 
I felt with these spiritual children. ye that labor 
for the meat that perisheth ! Though ye increase in 



jots. 209 

riches, I envy not your lot ; for all your gains would 
not purchase a single hour of such felicity as was 
mine, when with these converts I thought and talked 
of Christ and heaven ! I have often thought that 
as we are permitted to experience such joys as we 
sometimes do upon earth when we meet together, 
oh, what will be the bliss of heaven ! Oh, what rap- 
turous joy, what holy ecstacy will possess our souls, 
when' in that final meeting whence we shall never 
part we shall taste of those things which " eye hath 
not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into 
the heart of man ! " * 

After a short visit with the brethren at R * * *, I 
went to L * * *, where I had also labored two years 
before. There I preached in a good house of wor- 
ship, which they had built since the revival. I stayed 
and preached several times to them, with a view to 
comfort and strengthen them in the work of the 
Lord, and was not a little comforted myself to find 
the church in such prosperity. 

I then went to the town of M * * *, about twenty- 
five miles from Nauvoo, where there was a Baptist 
church and a small meeting-house. Here I fell in 
with my old yoke-fellow, Brother More. The church 
was in a miserable condition. Some two or three 
years before this, Satan had crept in among the 
brethren, through some difficulties about Mormon- 
ism. The church had attempted discipline, but the 
troubles increased and the infection had spread until 
it pervaded the whole body. For a long time they 
had held no meetings except once a month, which 

* 1 Cor. ii : 9. 



210 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

was on Saturday, and that was occupied in discipline 
and quarreling. The members had all back-slidden, 
and some of them had put their profession to an 
open shame. Though it was the only church in the 
region, it had become a by-worcl, and was hissed at, 
and was a standing reproach to the cause. Brother 
More and I felt our spirits stirred within us by the 
mournful state of the case, and resolved to make a 
trial in the place for the honor of God. TVe obtained 
permission to use the house, circulated our appoint- 
ment for meeting, and after packing wood about 
half a mile upon our backs and warming the house, 
we swept it, lighted up, and waited for the people, 
but we could get no congregation. For the first 
two or three nights we could not get enough hearers 
for a corporal's guard. "We appointed a morning 
prayer-meeting, but it seemed to have no more effect 
than the Pope's bull against the comet ; not a soul 
came out. Brother More and I then held a council 
of war, and decided to divide our forces, go through 
the town, visit every family, and preach to them at 
their houses. "We drew a line through the place to 
made an equal division of the work, and, he taking 
one side and I the other, we separated ; agreeing to 
meet at the meeting-house, the Lord willing, at sun- 
set, to make our report to each other, and talk mat- 
ters over. During the day, I knocked at the door 
of a house, and was bidden to " come in." I saw no 
one in the room but an old lady, who was busily 
working at a spinning-wheel in one corner. I intro- 
duced myself to her, told her my object in calling, 
drew up a chair, and commenced a religious conver- 



EXPERIENCE WITH THE DANCERS. 211 

sation with her. Suddenly some half-dozen young 
men and women entered the room. One of them 
had a fiddle, on which he immediately began to play, 
and the rest fell to dancing with all their might. I 
saw at once that it was a trick of the devil to bully 
me out of countenance ; but paying them no atten- 
tion, I exhorted the old lady to seek the Lord, 
reminding her that she was near the grave, and 
warning her not to delay. By my request she said 
I might pray for her, and, kneeling by her spinning- 
wheel, I besought the Lord in her behalf. For a 
time it seemed doubtful whether dancing or praying 
would take the sway, but the dancing ceased, and I 
commenced praying for the dancers. I told the Lord 
what they had done, and why they had done it, 
remarking in my prayer that they were evidently 
not Christians, and prayed God to open their eyes 
to see the folly of their ways, and prepare for the 
great judgment to come. When the prayer was 
closed, they were as quiet as kittens, and hung their 
heads as though they had been stealing sheep. I 
then exhorted them to mend their ways, and invited 
them out to hear the preaching. That night all the 
company were at meeting. In a few days every one 
of them was converted, and ever after treated me 
with the most cordial respect. I give this incident 
to show timid Christians that, so long as we have 
God on our side, there is no need of being scared 
out of countenance by the devil. 

I made a number of calls through the day, but had~ 
the misfortune to go without my dinner ; though in 
the evening I happened in a house just as they were 



VISITING. 213 

sitting down to supper, and gladly accepted an invi- 
tation to eat. I had heard nothing of Brother More 
through the day, and at sun-set went to meet him at 
the church, as agreed on, but could find no Brother 
More. I began to be uneasy for him, but near dark 
he came, and on inquiry I found that the first place 
he had stopped at in the morning was a grocery, and 
he so much dreaded to visit that he remained there 
all day, talking with the customers. He said that 
their chief business was drinking, playing poker, and 
casting slurs at religion. That night the house was 
crowded, and Brother More preached a powerful 
sermon. There was weeping through the house, but 
sinners made no move. The next morning a num- 
ber of the brethren came to prayer-meeting. I told 
them of the view of the church before the world, the 
tremendous interests pending, the fearful responsi- 
bility upon them, their backslidden state, and ex- 
horted them with all my power and feeling to con- 
fess their sins and backslidings openly to the world. 
I told them that they were verily guilty of standing 
in the way of sinners, and that if they did not make 
their confessions we would not stay another day, but 
would leave them with their ruined church to die in 
their own shame. It was like pulling teeth to get 
their confessions, but they saw that it was that or 
death. Finally one man got up very reluctantly, and 
began to talk a long way from the point; then he 
came a little nearer, and began to warm up and 
came a little nearer still. I was afraid he would 
miss it, but at length he grew very warm and came 
up square to the mark. Said he, " Brethren, I am 



214 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

a poor, miserable, wicked backslider. It was me 
that stole the pig! I have been a trouble-maker in 
Zion, and I want the church and the world to for- 
give me ! " Others then began to melt, and when he 
sat down there was a number who wanted to confess, 
and we soon had a regular breaking up and melting 
down. The ice was thawed out, and the spring-time 
came to their hearts. I then told them that this 
confession was well enough for the church, but that 
the world ought to hear it, and proposed to draft 
resolutions to be read to the public congregation 
from the desk at night, to the effect that the church 
would confess their short-comings to the sinners of 
the community, and ask their pardon. The resolu- 
tions were then drawn up and agreed to. At night I 
read them to the congregation, and dwelt upon them 
at some length and with much feeling. I then re- 
quested the people that as many of them as would 
freely forgive, would make it known by rising to 
their feet. At this there was a general rising. Tears 
flowed freely. It was a moment of deep interest. An 
awful solemnity prevailed. A certain doctor, who 
arose, fell down with emotion. The Spirit of God 
filled the place with mighty power; many cried 
aloud for mercy; and, seemingly in a moment of 
time, not less than fifty souls were brought under 
conviction. No preaching was done that night; 
there was no chance ; but it was a time to pray, and 
all who could pray began praying for the anxious 
in downright earnest. The meeting went on with 
power for several days, and many were converted 
to God. The membership of the church was doubled ; 



THE COLLECTION. 215 

backsliders were reclaimed; believers were renewed, 
and a new impetus was given to tbe cause of religion 
in that section. 

The people did not allow us to go away empty. 
By previous announcement a collection was taken 
up on tbe last nigbt of tbe meeting, for Brother 
More and myself, and when it was equally divided 
we had one dollar and seventy-five cents a piece to 
take home with us. 

Tbe leading trouble with this church was its anti- 
nomianism. The two leading spirits in the church 
were hyper-Calvinists. One of them had the pecu- 
liar belief that no church should have a settled 
pastor, and thought that no regular preacher should 
have a settled place of labor, but that all such should 
travel from place to place as circumstances would 
direct, and thus a church would hear new talent 
nearly every time it had meeting. But there was 
no need of a better argument against his doctrine 
than the condition of his own church, which was 
without a pastor. I would as soon think of raising 
a sweet family on wolf soup, as think of raising up a 
good church by feeding it with the doctrines of anti- 
nomianism. It is often called the " Two-Seed Doc- 
trine," and I believe it is the right Dame, for if you 
plant it, one seed will grow up an Infidel, and the 
other a Universalist. 

Brother More and I now went to the town of 
C * * *. On our arrival we stopped at a tavern, think- 
ing that as we were tired we would get refreshment 
and retire to bed early ; but the landlord, who was a 
Baptist, and had heard of our meetings, urged us to 



216 AU0BI0GRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

preach that night in the court-house. We told him 
that we did not feel able, and prayed him to excuse 
us. He then pleaded with us to allow him to 
gather a congregation in the bar-room, and have 
one of us preach there; but this arrangement we 
refused, and he left us. A short time after, as we 
were about going to bed, we noticed that the bar- 
room was being filled with people, and learned that 
the landlord had been spreading a notice about the 
town for preaching at the tavern. We saw that we 
could not well avoid the stratagem, and it fell to 
my lot to preach. The room was very warm, and 
crammed almost to suffocation. 

While preaching, I was conscious of a strange, 
musty smell in the room, but I gave it no particular 
notice at the time, and finished my sermon as well 
as I could. That night it snowed heavily, and the 
next day we walked twenty-six miles, and finished 
our journey home. 

My wife having fattened fourteen hogs, I took 
them to market, and sold them for one dollar 
thirty-seven and a half cents per hundred weight. 
The morning following I was taken very sick, and 
sent for a physician. When he came he said that I 
had the fever, and he blistered me and left medi- 
cines to stop its progress; but I grew worse. 
Finally, there was a strange breaking out of spots 
all over my body; and one who was acquainted 
with that loathsome disease, revealed to us the sad 
fact that I had the small-pox ! 

It appeared that I had caught it while preaching 
at the tavern in C * * * . The pestilence was 



TAKES THE SMALL-POX. 217 

brought there in the clothes of some of the people, 
and this accounted for the strange smell in the room 
during service. The news of my dreadful afflic- 
tion ran among the neighbors like wild-fire; all 
took the alarm and shunned my house with fear, as 
though it were the plague-spot of death, and we 
could get no assistance, My condition was terrible. 
My wife had all the burden of caring for me. 

So worn did she become in attending me in my 
helplessness that she often dropped asleep in her 
chair. I had never seen a case of the small-pox, and 
my impression of its fatality was such that as soon 
as I learned that I had it I despaired of life. My 
head became a hideous sight It wa,s so swollen 
that for two weeks my eyes were so tightly closed 
with the swelling that I could not distinguish day- 
light from darkness. There was scarcely a spot on 
my person where a pin's point could fee placed with- 
out touching a sore, My whole body was a bloated, 
festering mass, disgusting to the sight and offensive 
to the smell. To add to our afflictions, two of our 
children caught the disease from me. Had it not 
been for the kindness of my wife's brother, who 
finally came to our aid, I believe we would all have 
died. He had not even been vaccinated, but came 
and waited upon us, and in every way he could 
ministered to our necessities, though he did it at the 
risk of his own life. I have since seen men braving" 
danger on the battle-field; but I have never seen a 
nobler heroism than was shown by him in this in- 
stance. Nor did he suffer for his generosity, for he 
was permitted to pass through the exposure without 



218 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

taking the infection. There is much in the saying 
that " to the brave there is no danger." 

I was confined to my bed nine weeks', but after 
this I was unable to move for two weeks more, only 
as I was helped; for my feet were longer in heal- 
ing than any other parts, because the humors could 
not break through the thick sole-skin, or escape 
from under the nails of my toes ; and before I could 
entirely recover I had to lose all my toe-nails, and 
about a quarter of an inch thickness of old flesh 
from the bottom of each foot. This might have 
been prevented, but the physician was not practiced 
in the treatment of the disease, and some of his 
appliances only aggravated it. In prospect of death 
my soul was full of bright hopes for the future, but 
my sufferings were so extreme that I begged for 
death to be sent to my relief; but God, who it 
appears had something more for me to do, restored 
me to health, contrary to every expectation. Our 
children were also spared ; their sufferings, however, 
were much less than mine. 

I have ever since believed that it was the small- 
pox with which the devil afflicted Job. His being 
" smitten with sore boils, from the sole of his foot 
unto his crown,"* his extreme misery, the loath- 
someness of his person, his being forsaken by his 
friends, the distractions of his feelings, the length 
of his illness, and his scraping himself with a 
potsherd, f (a piece of broken earthenware,) presents 
as complete a description of a case of small-pox as 
any physician could give. "When my boils were 

* Job ii : 1. f Job ii : 8. 



219 

healing, and especially when the scabs were coming 
off, the itching of my body at times was almost dis- 
tracting. Concerning Job, " the Lord said unto 
Satan, behold he is in thine hand, but save his life." 
Satan had the privilege of afflicting him in the way 
which he thought the most trying, and I believe he 
chose the small-pox ; for of all the diseases which 
are in the service of death it is the most horrible. 

When I recovered, however, my general health 
was better than ever. I had formerly been troubled 
with the rheumatism, but the ulcerous exhalations 
carried off all the impurities of my system, and so 
rectified the fluids, that I came out from the furnace 
of trial like a new coin just from the mint. 

When Job recovered his worldly goods were in- 
creased to " twice as much as he had before," in 
oxen, sheep and camels, but I was dealt with in a 
very different way, though, doubtless, none the less 
merciful ; for the Maker of heaven and earth doeth 
all things well. My small stock of money had been 
paid out for necessaries in our sickness ; my stock 
of hogs had nearly all perished for want of care ; my 
doctor's bills had so accumulated that I sold all the 
cattle I had to square accounts, except one milch 
cow, and that cow died soon after, leaving us as 
poor and penniless as when we first began. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

LEAENING THE CAEPENTEES' TRADE — LABOEING AS AN 
EVANGELIST — THE STOOL-PIGEON — EETUEN TO THE 
BENCH — A SHAEPEE, ALIAS SCHOOL-TEACHEB — A 
COSTLY JOKE ON TWO BEETHEEN — LABOES AGAIN AS 
AN EVANGELIST — MEETING WITH A STUPID CHUECH — 
WHO THE DEVIL DON'T WANT — EEVIVAL AT COTTON- 
WOOD CEEEK — BAPTISM OF AN INVALID — BEMAEK- 
ABLE EESULTS — EEFLECTIONS. 

Jesus was a carpenter; Paul was a tent-maker; 
Luke is supposed to have been a physician ; Matthew 
and James the Less were tax-collectors ; Peter, An- 
drew, John, and James the Great, w r ere fishermen, 
and it is thought that the other six Apostles were 
also ; and though farming has always been the most 
common employment, it is nowhere intimated that 
Christ, or any of the twelve Apostles, or seventy 
disciples, ever followed it. This is suggestive. I 
think that if a minister is obliged to unite other 
labor with his calling in order to live, there is no 
honest occupation which will embarrass him more 
than that of a farmer. By it he is more apt to be 
tied to his secular business and shorn of his strength. 
To be a mechanic, artist or physician, is better; for 
he will have more liberty. 



LABORING AS AN EVANGELIST. 221 

I had always found it very difficult to unite the 
calling of a minister with the business of a farmer; 
and now that the small-pox had made my feet so 
tender that I had no hope of being able to pursue 
this employment again very soon, I found that some 
other was necessary. Thinking that the old trade 
of my Master would accommodate my calling as 
much as any other, I engaged with Brother M * * *, 
a Baptist minister in Missouri, to work for him one 
year as an apprentice to the carpenters' trade for 
one dollar per day and board. The brother with 
whom I worked was pastor of three churches, and 
he gave me plenty of preaching to do on Sabbaths ; 
but we moved on happily, feeling that we were use- 
ful beings in creation, for we worked at the -framing 
and building of the world six days in the week, and 
at the polishing of it on the seventh. As the winter 
came on, I was employed by the Wyaconda Associ- 
ation of Missouri to labor for three months among 
the churches as an evangelist. This association em- 
braced Clark county and a part of Scotland and 
Lewis counties. I was to hold protracted meetings 
with such churches of the body as invited me, and 
spend the remainder of my time, if I should have 
any, laboring in destitute places. I was to receive 
twenty-five dollars per month. I gladly embraced 
this opportunity for usefulness, and this was the first 
labor I ever did in the ministry with the promise of 
any pay. I found it necessary to have a horse to 
travel among the churches, and succeeded in buying 
one with my claim of seventy-five dollars for labor 
m the Association. I then moved my family from 



222 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

Iowa to Missouri, and began the good work. The 
Lord was with me, and in my meetings within these 
three months about one hundred and forty souls 
were converted, many backsliders were reclaimed, 
and one hundred and fifteen persons were baptized. 

Many incidents of interest occurred during this 
time. 

In one of my first meetings the daughter of a rich 
slaveholder came to the anxious seat with others, and 
wept and prayed for a change of heart. She was fully 
resolved to find salvation if there was mercy for her, 
and not obtaining a hope at first, she continued to 
go forward and bow at the anxious seat every night 
as long as the meeting lasted. We prayed with her 
and for her, and I gave her all the counsel and en- 
couragement I possibly could, but all seemed of no 
avail. Many others who had kneeled in sorrow at 
the same time and in the same place of prayer had 
found peace and were rejoicing, but there seemed to 
be no mercy for her. She was in great despair, and 
nothing we could do or say seemed to show her any 
reason for comfort ; and though she was still at the 
anxious seat, I was obliged to close the meetings 
and leave her without hope. 

The next protracted meeting I held was in another 
part of the country, and after preaching a night or 
two in the new place, I invited seekers of religion 
forward, and to my surprise, the first one who came 
to the prayer-circle was this same young lady. She 
besought us not to forget her, but to pray on, for she 
felt that in her present state she would surely perish 
if she could not find mercy. I then renewed my 



THE STOOL-PIGEON. 223 

exertions in her behalf, and tried to present the sav- 
ing truths and gracious promises of the gospel to 
her mind in a new light ; and as she kept coming to 
the anxious seat, I repeatedly tried to instruct and 
encourage her. She was willing to bear any cross, 
or obey any gospel requirement, and I could not see 
what was in her way. I prayed and plead for her ; 
the people of God joined in my petitions, and she 
prayed for herself, but all appeared to be to no 
purpose whatever. 

Finally, feeling that it was one of the unaccount- 
able things in grace and past my finding out, I com- 
mitted her to the mercies of God and dropped her 
case entirely. My mind somehow would not take 
any more interest in her, and as a seeker I paid her 
no further attention whatever. Yet the poor creature 
would come to the anxious seat until it perplexed 
me to see her there ; nor did she stop until the 
meetings were closed. 

I then began a third meeting in another place, 
and as I looked among the penitents who came for- 
ward, whom should I behold but the same young 
lady who had so long been the stool-pigeon. I won- 
dered how she managed to follow me so q|psely, and 
found that she had a carriage and a black driver at 
her control, and was independent to go when and 
where she chose. By this means she had followed 
the meetings, and in the spirit of the importunate 
widow, she pressed her plea with a perseverance 
that could brook no refusal. 

I took up her case again, and the thought came 
into my mind that there must be something yet un- 



224 AUOBIOGEAPHT OF A PIONEEK. 

revealed in her past history which would account 
for the fruitlessness of her search. I ventured to 
inquire more particularly ahout her former course of 
life. 

She said that though she felt that she was a sinner, 
she had surely committed no overt acts of crime, hut 
had sought to live a blameless life, and that she 
often prayed, and had given much thought to the 
subject of religion. 

I asked her if she had ever really felt any delight 
in prayer. She replied that she had, and that when 
she was quite young she had often felt happy with 
pious reflections. 

By following this channel of conversation, the fact 
was revealed to my satisfaction that in her early ex- 
perience, at the age of ten or twelve years, she had 
been truly regenerated, but, for lack of gospel in- 
struction and religious encouragement, she had neg- 
lected duty, lost confidence, and had since lived in 
fear, as the result. I then told her of the impossibil- 
ity of a soul receiving the gift of eternal life the 
second time, and being born on earth the third time. 
I told her that her trouble was, that she had not im- 
proved tlm blessing God had given, and that if she 
would enjoy comfort and hope, she must take up 
the Christian's cross, and go forward openly and 
boldly in every religious duty. At last she grasped 
the truth, acted by the advice, and was blessed with 
abiding peace. Ever after this, as long as I knew 
about her, she was a faithful and happy Christian. 
Should this account ever be read by any friend under 



RETURN TO THE BENCH. 225 

similar embarrassment, may it prove to him or her 
a blessing. 

In the spring I returned to the carpenter's bench 
with Brother M * * *, completed the term of my 
apprenticeship, and worked on at the business until 
the next fall. 

In the Baptist church at W * * *, of which my 
employer was pastor, were two brethren, one of 
whom was a deacon, and both men of considerable 
means. They were very much taken up with a 
young man who had come into town, wishing to 
start a high-school. He appeared like a young gen- 
tleman of high principles and superior culture, and 
withal was very modest in his behavior. He drove 
a fine horse and carriage with silver-mounted har- 
ness ; and as his calling was a respectable one which 
promised to benefit the town, he was well received 
by the people generally, but more especially by these 
two brethren, who thought he was a young man of 
extraordinary promise, and became his warmest 
friends. He showed a marked appreciation of their 
good will, and spent considerable time in their com- 
pany. As they were ready to help him carry out 
the enterprise he proposed, they built, at his request, 
a new addition to the already fine school-house. The 
young man said that he was from Kentucky, from 
which State he frequently received letters from his 
friends. He seemed to feel a great deal of concern 
about a suit which he had instituted in Kentucky, 
and which was still pending, relative to some mat- 
ters of family estate, consisting chiefly of negro 
property, in which an interest of several thousand 
10* 



226 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

dollars was involved. He showed letters to his two 
friends occasionally, which he said were from his 
lawyer in Kentucky, in regard to the progress of 
his suit. While the school building was being 
erected, he began to get serious and show a deep 
interest in religion. He said that he liked the 
preacher very much, and attended the meetings 
regularly. Finally, to the great satisfaction of his 
friends, he expressed confidence of having found a 
good hope through grace, and requested to be 
baptized. A few days before his baptism was to 
occur he drove up to Deacon B * * * ? s, and showed 
him a new letter from his lawyer in Kentucky, about 
the suit for the recovery of his negro property. 
Deacon B * * * read the letter, which stated that he 
had gained the suit, but there were three or four 
hundred dollars cost to pay, and that his client must 
send money for that purpose immediately, as he 
could not make a hasty sale of his negroes to a good 
advantage. As soon as they could be sold at a fair 
price, however, he Would send on the proceeds. 

After the deacon had read the letter, the young 
man told him in a modest wa}', that he did not 
happen at that time to have money enough by him 
to send his lawyer, and that if he would lend him 
one hundred and fifty dollars for a short time, it 
would be a great accommodation to him, and he 
would leave him his horse and buggy as security. 
Though the horse and buggy were worth more than 
twice that amount, the deacon told him he would 
not take the security; he would lend him the money 
without it ; but his friend urged him to take them, 






A COSTLY JOKE ON TWO BRETHREN. 227 

and getting the money, he left them in his hands. 
He then went to Brother C * * * 's, and in the same 
way borrowed two hundred dollars ; leaving his 
gold watch as security. Brother C * * * told him 
he did not want his watch, as he had no uneasiness 
about his friend's honesty ; but the young man got 
him to take it by strong urging. Things went on 
again as usual. The young man told his friends 
that he was very thankful for their favors, and 
seemed quite contented. 

In two or three days he went again to Deacon 
B * * * 's, and said he wanted to go to the town of 
A * * * , about ten miles distant, to solicit students 
for their new school, and post some notices concern- 
ing the terms and time it would open, and he wished 
he would lend him the horse and buggy. The 
deacon said that, of course, he could have it. He 
then drove by his equally confident friend C * * * ? s, 
and with the same ease borrowed his gold watch. 
After that he started in the direction of the town 
of A * * *, but has never been heard of since. The 
brethren were so befooled that for several days they 
would not believe he had run away, and when, 
finally, they tried to search for and arrest him, no 
trace of their nice young man could be found, and 
they beheld to their loss and great mortification, 
that their friend, convert, school enterprise, and all 
the fond hopes and plans pertaining thereto, had 

"Vanished in empty air!" 

" Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, 
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven." 



228 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

In the winter of 1852, I was employed again by 
the "Wyaconda Association for three months on the 
same field and upon the same terms as those of the 
previous winter. A large portion of my time, 
however, was spent in laboring in destitute places. 
I held one meeting in a place called Wakentaugh, 
where I found a number of Baptists from Tennessee, 
who, I think, were a little the coarsest and most 
ignorant of our brethren I ever fell among. It was 
a place of great spiritual poverty, and there were 
just enough such brethren there to show the utter 
destitution of that poverty. I could not get them 
to do anything or say anything. After several 
nights of vain effort, I resolved to set the plow 
deeper and prepare for it. We had been troubled 
every night for want of lights, and when night came 
again, there was a full congregation, but there was 
not a candle in the house, and we were all in such 
darkness that we could not tell the negroes from the 
white folks. I apologized to the congregation, and 
told them I hoped we would soon have light, and 
requested that some brother would go immediately 
and get some candles. As no one moved I urged 
again, but still no one wanted to go. I then gave 
them some pretty plain talk, rebuking them for 
their neglect. At this, a brother who seemed to 
think he knew what ought to be done, spoke out 
and said, " Jest git some bark and put it in that are 
stove, and throw open the door and it will give light 
a plenty. That's the way we used to do down in 
Tennessee, and we used to have glorious times ; fact 
is I can't see the use in a preacher havin to have a 



MEETING WITH A STUPID CHURCH. 229 

half a dozen candles to preach, by anyhow, and if 
Ise you, I'de jest put in some bark an go on with 
the preachin." 

I remarked that that would never do, because it 
would not give light enough to see across the 
room, and that besides it would smoke us out of the 
house in the bargain. Said I, " Can it be possible 
that there is no one here who will go and get some 
candles?" 

At this, another brother spoke out, and said : "I 
keen't, for I haint got none at hum." Two or three 
others then spoke to the same effect and showed 
considerable tartness toward me, for they felt hurt 
because I pressed them so hard. The fact was clear 
that they were too mean and stingy to afford candles 
for the services, and after blowing them up right 
well, I cut everything short in righteousness, dis- 
missed the meeting and cleared out. What will 
ever become of them I don't know. It is certain 
that unless they have mended their ways, God will 
not own them, and they are of so little account that 
the devil don't want them ; but such is a specimen 
of much of the society, or " white trash," that is 
raised under the accursed influences of slavery. 

During the winter I held a meeting on Cotton- 
wood Creek, which resulted in a large revival and 
the organization of a Baptist church. A brother 
and sister "W * * * , who resided there had a con- 
sumptive daughter, who became interested in reli- 
gion during the meeting, but was unable to attend. 
After I closed the protracted effort there I went to 
other places, and having heard no more of the 



230 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

young lady for some time, by reason of the many 
acquaintances I was continually forming, the re- 
memberance of her had almost passed from my 
mind; but in the latter part of March following I 
was sent for, by her request, to go on purpose to 
see her. 

She sent me word that she was in the last stage 
of her disease, and that as she expected to die soon 
she was very anxious to see me before she left the 
world. The greatest reason why she wished me to 
visit her, was that she wanted to be baptized, 
because she believed that since the meeting I had 
held near her father's, God had forgiven her sins 
and that it was her duty thus to obey Him, and as 
the Saviour said, " Fulfill all righteousness." 

When I went, her parents told me that she had 
often talked about being baptized, and wished 
them to send for me to administer the ordinance, 
but they had repeatedly refused, because she was 
so very feeble they feared it would kill her. They 
had tried to dissuade her from it, but all in vain ; 
they said that she would not be refused, but had 
begged and pleaded until they were wearied with 
hearing her, and they had felt compelled to send 
for me. 

They had hoped, however, that when I came I 
might be able to satisfy her mind that baptism in 
her case was unnecessary; but in this they were 
disappointed. When I went to her room she was 
overjoyed at seeing me, and said she could not tell 
how glad she was that I had come. She then told 
me what great things the Lord had done for her 



BAPTISM OF AN INVALID. 231 

soul, and repeated her request to be baptized. I 
inquired carefully of her in regard to her religious 
experience, and was well satisfied that she had truly 
become a subject of grace; but told her that the 
Lord did not ask impossibilities, and that in her 
present condition of body he certainly did not re- 
quire her to be baptized ; the Lord asks according 
to what a man hath, and not according to what he 
hath not. "Besides," said I, "if I should baptize 
you now, it might hasten your death and lay me 
liable. If such a thing should occur, the enemies 
of religion would use it to embarrass my ministry, 
and it might cripple my usefulness for life." Though 
she offered answers to all my objections, I felt that 
I certainly could not baptize her, for I feared she 
could not survive the shock. She had been confined 
to her bed a number of weeks, was a mere helpless 
skeleton and so weak that it was with much weariness 
that she conversed with me ; but she kept pleading 
for baptism with such an intensity of desire, that I 
held a council with her parents and friends to con- 
sider thoughtfully what should be done. All felt 
satisfied that she would soon die at best, and finally 
decided, her parents in particular, that they would 
prefer to run the risk of having her baptized than 
that of her continual worrying and ultimately dying 
unsatisfied; and they agreed that she should be 
baptized the next day, if alive. 

We then employed a carpenter to make a large 
box of sufficient size for the baptistry, and notified 
the neighbors that there would be preaching in the 
sick-room the next day. The invalid heard of these 



232 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

arrangements with the greatest satisfaction and 
rested quietty with her mind at ease awaiting the 
hour. 

The next day she enjoyed the sermon very much. 
A watery grave had heen prepared during the 
service within a few feet of her bedside — it was a 
solemn scene. After the dedicatory prayer, six 
brethren, three on each side, lifted her from her 
bed by the sheet on which she was lying and held 
her over the water. I supported her head with one 
hand while I repeated the ceremony, and when it 
ended with the solemn "Amen," she was buried in 
the water, and raised again. When she was laid 
upon the bed she showed no alarming symptoms 
whatever, and when her garments had been changed 
a few moments after, she said that she felt better 
than she had before for some time. To the glad 
surprise of all her friends, she really began to 
recover, and by degrees finally regained her former 
strength and spirits. 

The last I heard of her she was still living, enjoy- 
ing tolerable health, was the mother of three children, 
and I suppose she will read this book. 

As I have already offered some reflections on the 
subject of baptism, I will say but little here. This 
is simply a fact presented which may be attested by 
living witnesses; and on the controversy, as to 
whether the apostolic baptism endangers health or 
not, the reader may apply it for himself. 

It is certain, however, that some of our most 
noted physicians refuse to treat many chronic dis- 
eases unless the patient will submit to an occasional 



REFLECTIONS. 233 

cold bath; and I believe that there are many 
timid, nervous people, who have been scared about 
the old-fashioned baptism, who would have better 
health if they were immersed in cold # water once 
every week. 

u I saw a flood 
Of dark corruption: •.■•;• and wide at spread, 
And many aported on die fatal "brink, 
Wh °>ver more to health and hope returned ; 
Foi ose who p. : 3 did st "ght forget their Gotl, 
&. .a. Cur — and die. n 



t 

CHAPTEE XXII. 

BECOMES A MERCHANT — REPORTED AS AN ABOLITION- 
IST — FAILS IN BUSINESS — REMOVES THE STORE TO 
IOWA — PROSPERITY — BOATING — RAILROAD ENTER- 
PRISE — FINANCIAL RUIN — THE DEACON'S WISH — 
ADVICE TO MINISTERS — REMOVES TO CHARLESTON — 
MEETING AT NEW BOSTON — PERPLEXITY WITH TWO 
MOCKERS — WHAT BECAME OF THEM — METHODIST 
LADY BAPTIZED BY MISTAKE — EFFECTS OF READING 
THE BIBLE BY TWO LADIES — INTERESTING CONVER- 
SION OF MR. R* * *, — A REVIVAL MEETING IN KEO- 
KUK — RETURN HOME. 

In the spring I returned again to my jack-plane, but 
had not worked long when new prospects opened. 
A Baptist brother by the name of C * * * , who was 
an old acquaintance, came to the town of W * * * to 
set up a store and proposed to accept me as a part- 
ner. By selling my horse I managed to raise one 
hundred dollars. I then borrowed nine hundred 
dollars of my partner, and we commenced business 
with a stock of two thousand dollars between us. 

This was getting all my eggs into one basket; 
but, thought I, " Xothing risked, nothing gained," 
and hoping for the best, we stuck out our shingle. 

At first, things looked hopeful, but it was soon 
noised about by our rivals in trade that our firm 



BECOMES A MERCHANT. 235 

were Abolitionists. This was thought to be a hor- 
rible story, and we soon felt its effects on our 
business. We undersold the other merchants, but 
to no purpose, the patronage was carefully withheld 
from us ; and after a fruitless trial of about nine 
months we abandoned the place. 

We then moved our store to the town of C * * *, 
on the Des Moines river, and increased the stock 
two thousand dollars more, which was done chiefly 
on credit. 

Here our custom increased, and we prospered 
finely. At length we connected the grain trade with 
our store-keeping. We bought the grain, loaded it 
in keel-boats, and ran it down the Des Moines, 
where we sold it at a good profit. Our business be- 
came quite extensive, and we made money fast. I 
had not ceased to preach on the Sabbaths in the 
mean time, and enjoyed life pretty well, though my 
mind was evidently too much engaged in secular 
plans. 

Finally we took a contract to get out and deliver 
a large quantity of railroad-ties, for building the 
Warsaw and Rockford Railroad, in Illinois. We 
employed a large number of hands to work on the 
job, and paid them in money and store goods. 

We were to receive our dues from the company 
every month. They made several failures to pay us, 
but the company was thought to be perfectly reliable, 
and we were so confident of its solvency that we 
went on with the work. We rafted the ties down 
the Des Moines, towed them across the Mississippi 
by steam, banked them all on Ihe Illinois shore 



236 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

above high, water mark, and thus completed the 
whole contract before we stopped. 

Here we made a dreadful mistake in putting all 
our eggs in one basket — nearly our whole capital 
was consumed in filling the contract, and the rail- 
road company, after making many fair promises, 
burst up and left us in financial ruin ! 

"We then went out of business, and, after settling 
all claims against the firm, and dividing what was 
left of our hapless fortune, the cash balance in my 
favor was only three dollars and fifty cents ! About 
eighteen hundred dollars in old book accounts fell 
to my share, but of that I never collected more than 
fifty. 

Before this misfortune I was in good circumstances 
and prospectively rich; but thus did our riches 
" make themselves wings"* and fly away, leaving us 
to the dreary comforts of disappointment, and the 
sober fellowship of our own reflections. 

Says the Saviour, " Take heed and beware of 
riches, for a man's life consisteth not in the abund- 
ance of the things which he possesseth." 

While a merchant I was pastor of two small 
churches, but was not expected to do much for them 
except to preach on the Sabbath, and it was my im- 
pression that the Lord was not pleased to have my 
mind so much occupied in worldly pursuits. 

A good deacon of my acquaintance once said to 
his pastor, "I have often thought, elder, that if I 
had a million of dollars I would do a great amount 



* Prov. xxiii : 5. 



THE deacon's wish. 237 

of good with it, in building churches, supporting 
missionaries and Sabbath schools, and the like. It 
grieves me that I have so little to give for the cause 
of religion." 

, The pastor remarked that the Lord knew his heart, 
and he believed that if his deacon would really have 
made such a use of that amount of money he would 
have been allowed to use it. 

"Ah! that's the rub," said the deacon; " I'm 
afraid the good Lord knows me too well to trust me" 

Like the deacon, I thought I would do generous 
things for the cause, if the Lord would grant me the 
capital, but I suppose for the same reason he did 
not, because he knew me too well to trust me. 

I warn ministers against making too large calcu- 
lations on obtaining worldly wealth, for it is a fact 
that the Lord is not often willing to trust them with 
much money — he knows them too well. 

The sons of Levi had no possessions among their 
brethren; they were so well fed and supported in 
their holy office that they did not need them ;* their 
office was their riches, and God designs that their 
office shall be their riches still, f Also, " they which 
ministered about holy things, lived of the things of 
the temple;" and God often shows us, by provi- 
dences such as I have related, as well as by his word, 
that ministers have no business in secular pursuits, 
but that their office should be their sufficient wealth, 
as " they who preach the gospel J should live of the 

* Num. xviii: 21. f Matt, x: 9. 

% 1 Cor. ix: 11—14. 



238 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

gospel, and give their whole time and all their 
talents to the work.* 

I now moved to Charleston, Towa, and rented a 
house, paying $2.50, the first month's rent, in ad- 
vance. I commenced preaching to the people and 
working at my trade. Moderate prosperity attended 
me. Through my trade I bought the house I had 
rented, and when I had lived in it for a year I sold 
it for double what it cost. But even here I was too 
thoughtful of the world, and had much coldness of 
soul, which was manifest in my preaching through 
the summer. 

In the winter following, I held a meeting at New 
Boston, three miles from Charleston. 

On the second night of the meeting, after nine 
persons had been received for baptism, two young 
men came up, requesting to be baptized on the fol- 
lowing Sabbath. I asked them to tell their experi- 
ence, but they would not even make any attempt. 
We tried to ascertain their feelings by asking them 
questions, but they did not make any replies. I 
thought it strange. Their cases were deferred, and 
a committee was appointed to wait upon them, ob- 
tain more satisfaction, and report to the church. 

"We hoped that they were children of Glod, though 
they seemed to be dumb ones, and I required of the 
brethren to find some better evidence of their con- 
version before they were baptized ; but that night 
one of the most severe snow storms occurred that 
I ever knew. On Sabbath morning it was bitterly 

* 1 Tim. iv: 15. 



THE MOCKEKS PUNISHED. 239 

cold; the snow in places covered the tops of the 
fences, and when I attempted to get to the place of 
worship, I floundered along in the snow for about 
three hundred yards, but the cold was so intense I 
was obliged to return, almost perished. This put a 
stop to our meetings ; and as the weather continued 
severe they were not renewed, and some of the con- 
verts were not baptized until spring. It was after- 
ward found that those two young men who had 
requested to be baptized on the following Sabbath, 
were hypocrites, who had been hired by a certain 
man to feign religion, and attempt what they did. 
They might have gone so far as to have been bap- 
tized, but Providence prevented it. It was a bold, 
God-insulting mockery, and they doubtless chuckled 
over it among their wicked companions ; but what 
was the sequel ? It is one which ought to be a 
warning to all mockers. The next summer one of 
those young men suddenly took the cholera while 
at the plow-handles, dropped down in his furrow, 
and was soon a corpse ! The other was put in the 
penitentiary for the commission of crime ! Let the 
wicked beware ! God is not to be mocked with im- 
punity; for he has declared that the way of the 
transgressor is hard.* Those mockers both prob- 
ably perished in their sins ; so true it is that they 
who sow to the wind shall reap the whirlwind, and 
the hard-hearted and stiff-necked " shall suddenly 
be destroyed, and that without remedy."f 

The same winter I was requested to hold a pro- 
tracted meeting in Tuscarora, in Lee county, Iowa. 

* Prov. xiii : 15 + Prov. xxix : 1. 



240 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

It was a field which, had been held for some time by 
the Methodists and Presbyterians ; but their efforts 
had not been successful, and a couple of Baptist 
familes having moved into the place, they wished 
the Baptists to make an effort also. 

We made the effort and enjoyed a glorious revival 
season. It resulted in the organization of a Baptist 
church of about fifty members, and some accessions 
to the other churches. 

An incident occurred in connection with this 
meeting which was rather odd. A lady living in 
the vicinity, who belonged to the Methodist church, 
sent a messenger to me saying, that having been 
sprinkled she was not contented, and that she 
wished to be baptized. This was no unusual occur- 
rence, but the oddity was that she wished to receive 
the ordinance at my hands and still remain in the 
Methodist church. The Baptist church was the 
church of her choice, but her parents were opposed 
to her joining it; and she wished to remain with 
the Methodists until such time as she could unite 
with us with less opposition. I sent her word that 
I had no jurisdiction over the members of the 
Methodist church, and had no right to molest 
them, and furthermore, that she would violate her 
church rules and make herself liable to discipline by 
taking such a step, and I would not baptize her. I 
heard no more from her for some time ; but a few 
days after this I baptized a considerable number of 
converts. I knew how many were expected to be 
baptized, but having a very short acquaintance with 
the converts, and being very happy in singing and 



METHODIST LADY BAPTIZED BY MISTAKE. 241 

talking, I did not take particular notice, and bap- 
tized every one who stepped forth. 

When the baptism was over, I got into a wagon, 
which was already well-loaded, to ride from the 
water ; but I had not been in long until the laugh- 
ing and talking of some of the passengers, in a sly 
way, gave me a hint that something odd had hap- 
pened, and I inquired what it was, when they told 
me, to my surprise, that I had baptized that Metho- 
dist lady ! I felt embarrassed about the matter, and 
went immediately to see her. It appeared that 
what led her to take the course she did, was her 
great anxiety, and this was her only apology. I 
then told her that as we held baptism to be the 
initiatory rite into the church, ft followed that she 
had, by her own act in the step she had taken, come 
into the church, and that we were obliged to regard 
her as a member until her dismission, exclusion, or 
death. I told her, also, that as she only was re- 
sponsible, she must take her own choice of the 
chances. But still, instead of regretting what she 
had done, she was tremendously pleased to find that 
she was a Baptist, and thus the matter was settled ; 
she remained in the church, and made a good 
member. 

I believe that I have already said that I have 
baptized as many as fifty-seven in one year, who had 
been sprinkled or poured, and so I have been bap- 
tizing more or less of those every year of my min- 
istry. I might give many incidents concerning such 
cases. I will here relate one which just now occurs 
to me as I learned it from a Baptist minister of my 
11 



242 AUOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

acquaintance, and which shows the effect of studying 
the Scriptures on doctrine ; and as it is not so long 
as the history of Theodosia, I deem it worth a place 
here. The incident occurred not long since under 
the brother's ministry, in a certain town in Illinois. 
There was a Mrs. R * * *, an intelligent lady who 
had been sprinkled in infancy, and though she did 
profess to be a Christian, she had been raised, under 
Congregationalist influences, to look upon her infant 
baptism as a most sacred thing. While stopping 
with a Methodist lady in town, she attended a series 
of Baptist meetings, and was induced to give her 
heart fully to the Lord. She greatly loved those who 
had been instrumental in her salvation ; but said to 
the minister, when he afterwards called at the house 
in which she was stopping, that however much she 
esteemed the Baptist people, she did not see how she 
could unite with them, as they would require her 
to be immersed, and she could not consent to that, 
because, in the first place, it was mid-winter, the 
river was filled with ice, and she felt that she could 
not endure the trial ; she thought her constitution 
was not strong enough to bear the shock of the cold 
water; but this was not all. The most serious 
objection was, that if she should be immersed it 
would be treating her infant baptism with contempt; 
this she could not think of doing, as she held it as 
most sacred and binding. The minister then asked 
her if she was not willing to do anything which she 
was persuaded that the Lord required of her. " Yes, 
sir," said she, " I hope I would be willing, if neces- 
sary, to die at the stake." 



EFFECT OF BEADING THE SCRIPTUEES. 243 

He then asked her if she had ever searched the 
Word of God carefully, to ascertain whether he 
required her to hold to her infant sprinkling or not, 
and whether he did not really require her to he 
baptized. "I have not searched it closely," she 
replied, " for I have always been well enough satis- 
fied without it; but I think, though, that I can find 
abundance of proof of my baptism in the Scrip- 
tures." The minister then told her that he would 
present no argument whatever, but that he wished 
her to give all her spare time for the next two days, 
in searching the Scriptures on the subject, and that 
if she found any passages which sanctioned infant 
sprinkling, or sprinkling of adults, for baptism, she 
would mark them down on paper, for as he would 
call again at the end of that time, he would like to 
see them. He also remarked that as her friend, the 
lady of the house, had been a Methodist for twenty 
years and had been sprinkled, she no doubt believed 
in it, and would aid her in finding the passages. 
This the Methodist lady consented to do ; and ex- 
pressing the hope that Sister R* * * would obey 
whatever the Scriptures taught her, the minister 
took his leave, ■ 

Mrs. R* * * was quite awakened to the subject, 
and searched the Scriptures diligently ; and as the 
Methodist lady was a little piqued at the remarks 
of the minister, she searched very carefully, also, for 
the purpose of aiding her boarder to find infant 
sprinkling ; and for two days they gave the Bible 
such close attention as they had searcely ever done 



244 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

before. The result was that both of them were 
surprised and disappointed. 

When the minister called again and wished to 
know the results of their study, Mrs. R* * * , with 
a hopeless look, pointed him to the passage which 
speaks of Christ blessing little children, and the 
baptism of the households of Lydia and the Philip- 
pian Jailer ; but as she confessed that they afforded 
no real proof, there was little to be said. A brief 
outline of the Baptist views on Bible doctrine was 
then presented to her, in the hearing of the Metho- 
dist lady, and a list of scriptural references left, with 
the request that Mrs. R * * * would look them out, 
read them thoughtfully, and act so far as her con- 
science, enlightened by the Bible, should dictate. 

A few evenings after this, as candidates were 
being received for baptism, Mrs. R * * * and the 
Methodist lady both came up, related their Christian 
experience, spoke of their confidence in Baptist 
doctrines, and on the following Sabbath were both 
immersed in the Mississippi river, while the ice was 
floating around them ; nor did they show the slight- 
est alarm in receiving the ordinance, but declared 
immediately after it was over, that they never felt 
better in all their lives, either in soul or body. Ever 
since then they have been respectable members in 
the Baptist church. 

While I was pastor of the church in Charleston, 
in the year 1856, one of our deacons, who lived near 
the meeting-house, sold out his farm to Mr. R * * *, 
whose family consisted of himself and wife, and five 
or six children, who were old enough to attend to 



CONVERSION OP ME. R * * * . 245 

religion. Neither Mr. R * * * nor any of his family 
were professors, though they were very respect- 
able people. The wife and one of the daughters, 
after they had been there a short time, became con- 
cerned for their souls, and one day they were in- 
duced to attend our covenant meeting. At that 
meeting the power of God was manifest ; they 
sought religion, became hopefully converted, and 
before they left the house were both received for 
baptism. 

The husband, who in the mean time was in the 
field sowing buckwheat, observed that the meeting 
was lengthy, and felt a presentiment that his wife 
and daughter were acting some part in it, and it 
gave him great uneasiness. As soon as meeting 
was out, he went home and asked his wife in regard 
to it. She then told him what she and the daughter 
had done. As soon as he heard this he was very- 
much provoked, nor could his feelings be pacified. 
He knew well enough that they had done right, and 
yet he hated it with all his heart, and he became so 
unhappy over the matter that he tried to sell his 
farm, that he might move out of the country ; but 
he did not succeed, and thus the matter ran on until 
the next winter. We then commenced a protracted 
meeting. To this Mr. E * * * came a few times, 
but it became too hot to suit him, and he grew very 
much displeased with it, as it revived his troubles of 
mind, and getting up his team he went off to a mill, 
a distance of twenty miles, and remained away a 
considerable time, visiting with some friends and 
trying to sell his farm. He became so anxious to 



246 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

move out of the country that he put down the price 
of his farm to a very low figure, and tried hard to 
sell it; but as he could not find a purchaser, he 
returned, after an absence of several days, hoping 
that at least the meeting would be closed ; but on 
getting home he found, to his surprise, that it was 
yet in full blast, and what was more annoying still, 
nearly all his family had joined the church ! 

Being prevailed upon to attend meeting that night, 
he went, and tried to get into a back seat ; but the 
devil had all the back seats occupied, and the poor 
man was pressed up pretty well forward into the 
warm atmosphere, where he was obliged to receive 
the full force of the sermon, without any whisperers 
around him to prevent it. When, finally, the ser- 
mon was ended and the invitation given, he rushed 
to the anxious-seat, exclaining, " I can't stand it any 
longer !" 

He was afterward converted, and proved to be an 
excellent Christian. In a short time he was chosen 
to the deacon's office, to fill the old deacon's place, 
which post he has filled with usefulness to the cause, 
and dignity and honor to himself. This meeting 
lasted about six weeks, and many of the leading 
citizens were brought into the church, who remain 
there to the present. 

It is truly wonderful how the Lord, by his provi- 
dences, often overrules the plans of men for their 
own good and his glory, and it is no less surprising 
how men of natural hearts will try to run from their 
highest interests. 



MEETING AT KEOKUK. 247 

One dear brother, who belonged to a church in 
Illinois where I held a meeting, and who was one 
of the main supports of the church, sold out his 
possessions and started to Oregon; but he had not 
gone far on his journey, when sickness and other 
hindrances combined, compelled him to turn aside 
and make his home, for the time, in Iowa. 

It was so ordered that the community in which he 
stopped was one in which there was no church or 
religious interest. He began a little prayer-meeting, 
invited the neighbors in, and prayed for them and 
talked to them the best he could ; and after he had 
continued these efforts for some time, a revival 
began among them. 

He then procured the assistance of a minister, who 
united with him in his efforts, and in a very short 
time they had a church in the vicinity which num- 
bered over a hundred souls ! 

In the spring of 1857, some brethren who wished 
to maintain a mission interest in the city of Keokuk, 
about three-fourths of a mile from the First Baptist 
Church in that place, sent for me to hold a meeting 
at that point. I was so much engaged with cares at 
the time that I thought I could not go, and refused ; 
but in about two weeks after this they came for me, 
bringing a carriage to take me down, and declared 
that they could not return without me. 

Their request was so urgent that it could not well 
be refused, and I went with them. We began 
meetings in a private house, as it was the only avail- 
able place, and the Lord soon gave us souls for ouf 
hire ; but after we had preached a few evenings, the 



248 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

crowd which would come could not get into the 
house, and as some eighteen or twenty souls had 
already experienced hope, who had been gathered 
in by the meeting, the brethren thought that the 
interest demanded the organization of a church at 
that point, that we might work with more efficiency, 
and make better arrangements for the up-building 
of the cause. Keokuk was a growing city, and as it 
contained but one Baptist church, it was thought 
that another was needed in a different part of the 
place; but to this plan a strong opposition arose 
from a certain quarter which was unlooked for, and 
threw us into perplexity. 

The source of this opposition, or its character, I 
need not mention, but suffice it to say that it defeated 
the plan for that time, and so discouraged our efforts 
that we ceased them, and I went home. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

RETURN TO KEOKUK — A CHURCH ORGANIZED — ELECTED 
PASTOR — INTERESTING PRAYER-MEETINGS " BRIM- 
STONE CORNER" — GREAT PROSPERITY — BAPTIST COUN- 
CIL — PERSECUTION — STRUGGLES — SCRAPS OF HIS- 
TORY CONCERNING BAPTISTS — DEFENCE OF THREE 
MINISTERS BY PATRICK HENRY, AND HIS ELOQUENT 
SPEECH — REFERENCES — A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE. 

In a few weeks from the time I left Keokuk the 
brethren sent for me again. They had resolved to 
go forward with the interest at all hazards, -and had 
rented a hall in which to hold meetings that would 
seat three or four hundred hearers. We then re- 
newed the attack on Satan's kingdom, and held a 
series of meetings in the hall which lasted about five 
weeks. 

The Lord was pleased to hear the prayers of our 
little company, and set down the right foot of his 
power, and before the meeting closed we had bap- 
tized eighty-five converts. These converts, with the 
few other brethren, then organized themselves into 
a church. The newly organized body then elected 
me pastor. I did not wish to take the post, but the 
brethren would not hear a refusal,; and as Provi- 
dence seemed to point out my duty in that direction, 
11* 



250 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

I moved my family into the city, and was installed 
bishop of the new church. 

During the first year we received fifteen or twenty 
accessions more, and enjoyed a high degree of spiritu- 
ality and prosperity. 

The most marked feature of the church at this 
period was its large and interesting prayer-meetings. 
As the members were nearly all new beginners in 
religion, I gave particular attention to the prayer- 
meeting interest, and tried to get every one to attend 
regularly, and pray and talk as much as possible. 
We felt that they were the hope of the church, and 
tried to leave nothing undone that could be done 
to make them profitable and interesting. 

These meetings were so lively and varied in their 
exercises that they became a popular place of resort 
for the careless on Sabbath nights, and the prayers 
and exhortations were so often full of warmth and 
fire, that the wags gave to our place of worship the 
name of " Brimstone Corner." The name, however, 
did us no harm ; it only made the place the more 
noted and popular. 

" Where are you going to-night, Lemons ?" one 
would ask as he would halloo across the street to 
an acquaintance. 

" I don't know," would be the reply, perhaps. 

" Let's go down to Brimstone Corner, to prayer- 
meeting." 

"Agreed," would be the answer, and off they 
would go the prayer-meeting of the Second Baptist 
Church. 



BAPTIST COUNCIL. 251 

Thus scores came in to hear and to see who, it 
was true, cared little for religion, but some who 
came only to see and to hear went away to pray and 
to weep, while the members greatly grew in grace 
and waxed bold in the faith. 

A strong attachment grew up within me for my 
brethren, and I took such delight in laboring among 
them, that although I had commonly thought that 
my most useful sphere was that of an evangelist, I 
felt so much encouraged as to the prospects of build- 
ing up a strong and useful church, that when they 
elected me pastor for the second year, with the 
generous promise of $1,000, I continued with them. 
During the next winter we prospered greatly. I 
held a great many night meetings, and we were 
permitted to visit the river and baptize every Sab- 
bath, for eleven Sabbaths in succession. When the 
second year closed, the membership of the church 
numbered two hundred souls. In the mean time we 
had bought a good lot in the city, and got part of 
the materials on the ground for building a good 
house of worship. Though all this was done, under 
God, in the short space of two years, it is the more 
surprising that it was done in the midst of the most 
determined sectarian opposition. Every inch of the 
ground we gained was hotly disputed. 

While I was laboring in Keokuk the First Baptist 
Church had an unfortunate difficulty with a hetero- 
dox minister, by which means it was badly perplexed ; 
and after much embarrassment about the matter, it 
finally called a council. This council, which was a 
large one, and of which the Rev. E". Colver, D. D., 



252 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

was chairman, was composed of much of the first 
talent of the "West. As the minister in question was 
non-fellowshiped, as such, by the council, for un- 
soundness in doctrine and practice, and also dismissed 
by the church, the opponents of our doctrines in the 
city, who had been wonderfully pleased at the man- 
ner in which the said minister, who was very popular 
with them, had been setting aside the old Baptist 
land-marks, claimed to have a strong sympathy for 
him, and were loud in their denunciations against 
the proceedings of the church and the council. We 
felt sorry that there was a necessity for his dismissal, 
but it could not be helped. It was truly urged by 
way of apology, that no denomination would be will- 
ing to sustain and nurse a minister to destroy its 
own doctrines ; but this apology was not heeded, 
and when the council dispersed, it left us behind 
with the bear to fight. The Pedoes presented their 
charges against the Baptists with earnest declama- 
tions, and " piled them on and rubbed them in." 
The attacks upon us were so simultaneous, that it 
seemed that they were going to take us by storm. 
They fondled the man as long as they could use his 
case to create public prejudice against the Baptists ; 
but when their new harp was spoiled and became 
useless, they forgot their sympathy and dropped him 
in the mud, which doubtless disappointed and mor- 
tified him more than anything the Baptists ever did. 

While going up a street one day, I was met by a 
certain Pedobaptist elder, who opened his batteries 
upon me in a style about as follow , 

" Good morning, Pickard." 



PERSECUTIONS. 253 

" Good morning," said I. 

" Pickard, that Baptist council you had here was 
a dreadful concern. The man who was chairman 
was the most corrupt and bigoted man I ever saw. 
In fact I consider that the whole body was a corrupt 
mess. Such persecution as they showed in their 
deliberations and decisions haven't a parallel in 
modern history." 

" My dear sir," said I, " it must be then that you 
have not read modern history very closely ; for if 
you had you would have read of some persecutions, 
with which these imaginary ones you speak of will 
bear no comparison." 

" If modern history," said he, " gives any record 
of more bigoted religious intolerance, I would like 
to know it." 

" "Well, sir," said I, "as to the case of this minis- 
ter, we have simply expressed our views of doctrine 
and practice, and have withdrawn ourselves from 
him, as the New Testament requires we should do, 
from all those who walk disorderly.* ¥e have 
thereby merely sought to disabuse ourselves without 
abusing him, and have left him free to enjoy his own 
opinions, and unite with some other Christian body 
which will be more in harmony with his views ; but, 
sir, history informs us that your Pedobaptist fathers 
have locked the Baptists from their places of wor- 
ship, and forbidden them to enter at their peril. 
They have forbidden Baptist ministers to preach. 
They have banished them from the country. They 

* 2 Thes. iii : 6. 



254 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

have whipped them at the whipping-post. And all 
this has been done on American soil, mostly within two 
hundred years I But, sir, let me tell you what all this 
was for : It was simply for ' denying infant baptism, 
and the use of secular force in religious affairs!' " * 

This was turning the tables wonderfully, and the 
brother came very near collapsing. He flew into a 
splutter, declared he did not believe a word of it, and 
left me with his feelings very much riled. 

As we received frequent assaults, more or less of 
this character, in public and private, which I thought 
were prejudicial to the Baptist cause, I resolved to 
stir up their pure minds by way of remembrance, 
and to this end preached a sermon according to pre- 
vious announcement to a large audience, on Baptist 
history. My object was, inasmuch as the subject of 
religious bigotry had created considerable interest 
of late in the Gate City, to unmask it when and 
where it could be found, and show what it was, and 
whom it most concerned. In the discourse I related 
and read numerous historical facts, by which I 
showed that the Baptists, instead of being such in- 
tolerant bigots as some would like to make them 
appear, had from the beginning of American history 
and before, always insisted on liberty of conscience 
in all matters of religion, to all mankind ; and that 
in our early struggles for deliverance from national 
thraldom, their views and ideas were the very van- 
guards of liberty ; f and that instead of their having 
been oppressors of other sects, they had suffered the 

* Backus. f " Baptist Denomination,' 1 p. 333. 



PERSECUTIONS IN BOSTON. 255 

most bitter persecutions from other sects on account 
of the doctrines. As I think that two or three of 
those historical quotations may benefit the reader 
and enrich my book, I will here give them. 

PERSECUTION OF 0BADIAH HOLMES, IN BOSTON. 

" Let us roll back the dial of the world to the 
month of September, in the year 1651, and place 
ourselves in imagination in one of the streets of old 
Boston town. See ! there is a crowd passing along 
toward the place of public punishment and disgrace. 
In their midst is a man, bound and handled by the 
rude officers of the law as a criminal ; but showing 
in his meek upturned countenance no tokens of 
guilt, and uttering with his lips the language of 
Christian exhortation and prayer. Who is he ? 
What is his name ? And what is the crime with 
which he is charged ? 

"He is a minister of the Lord Jesus Christ, a 
Baptist minister. His name is Obadiah Holmes, and 
his crime is, that he has dared to preach the same 
gospel- and administer the same ordinances as those 
which have been maintained on the same spot by 
the beloved and venerated Stillman, and Baldwin, 
and Sharp, in succession, now for more than three 
quarters of a century. But see ! his clothes are 
rudely torn from his person by the coarse and brutal 
executioner, and this minister of Christ is tied se- 
curely to the whipping-post. Hark! he speaks. 
6 Good people all, I am now about to be baptized in 
afflictions, that so I may have fellowship with my 



256 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Lord ; and am not ashamed of His sufferings, for by 
His stripes I am healed.' 

" His voice is silenced for a moment by the cruel 
thongs of the ' three-corded whip/ dashing the 
crimson gore from the quivering flesh of the man of 
God ; and again he cries aloud, * Though my flesh 
should fail, and my spirit should fail, yet God would 
not fail me ! ■ 'And so,' to use the language of the 
meek sufferer, in relating this cruel scene to his 
brethren in England, * it pleased the Lord to come 
in, and to fill my heart and tongue as a vessel full, 
and with an audible voice I broke forth praying 
to the Lord not to lay this sin to their charge, and 
telling the people that now I found God did not 
fail me, therefore I should trust him forever. For, 
in truth, as the strokes fell upon me, I had such a 
spiritual manifestation of God's presence as I never 
had before ; and the outward pain was so removed 
from me, that I could well bear it; yea, and in a 
manner felt it not ; although it was grievous, as 
the spectators said, the man striking with all his 
strength, spitting in his hands three times, with a 
three-corded whip, giving me therewith ^thirty 
strokes.' 

"A few days later, and that meek sufferer, bruised 
and wounded so that for weeks he could only rest 
on his hands and knees, might have been seen 
stealthily threading his way through the forest wil- 
derness between Boston and Providence, to escape 
the constable, who, with a second warrant, was hunt- 
ing again for his prey ; and as he drew near to the 



PERSECUTIONS IN BOSTON. 257 

Rhode Island asylum of freedom,* the voice of 
thanksgiving and songs of praise might have been 
heard ' for miles in the woods/ where pioneers of 
soul-liberty had gone to meet their suffering brother, 
to thank God for his deliverance, and to pour oil 
into his wounds. 

•"'It may serve as an index to the prevailing opin- 
ions, even in New England, two centuries ago, to 
mention that when this act of cruel persecution was 
severely rebuked in a letter from Sir Richard Salton- 
stall, in England, the Rev. John Cotton, author of 
the reply to Williams, entitled 6 The Bloody Servant 
washed and made white in the Blood of the Lamb/ 
boldly justified and defended the whipping of 
Holmes, and the right of the magistrate to^ersecute, 
by the flimsy sophism that ' if the worship be lawful 
in itself, the magistrate compelling a man to it com- 
pelleth him to sin, but the sin is in the man's will 
that needs to be compelled ; ' and at that time not a 
minister in New England could be found, with the excep- 
tion of the .Baptists of Rhode Island, to dissent from the 
views of Mr. Cotton, or to speak a word in favor of free- 
dom to worship God I " 



PERSECUTION OF A BAPTIST CHURCH IN BOSTON. 

" On the 28th of May, 1665, Thomas Gould, a 
member of a Pedobaptist church in Charlestown, 
Richard Goodall, a member of a Baptist church 
in London, and seven other humble disciples, after 

* The Baptist Settlement of Roger Williams. 



258 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

wading through a sea of persecution, formed them- 
selves into the First Baptist Church of Boston. 
Fifteen years later, on the 8th of March, 1680, the 
doors of their humble sanctuary were nailed up by 
the marshal, and a notice posted thereon, warning 
4 all persons ' against holding any meetings or open- 
ing the doors, ' as they will answer the contrary at 
their peril.' And the little despised band were com- 
pelled to meet to worship God under a temporary 
covering in the yard of their meeting-house. 

" But soon a brighter day begins to dawn. Every 
experiment has only proved the utter folly of attempt- 
ing to control the conscience by coercive means. The 
sun of soul-liberty, shining so brightly over the neigh- 
boring cc4ony of Rhode Island, sends its rays beyond 
the limits of the noble little State ; and at length 
light bursts into the minds of the ministers of Bos- 
ton, and they begin to look with a more favorable 
eye upon the little company of Baptists in their 
midst, who have so long and so nobly struggled for 
'freedom to worship God.' The march of freedom 
is onward, still onward, and the doctrine of Roger 
Williams (the Baptist apostle of < soul-liberty,' or 
6 liberty of conscience,') is at last triumphant." 

I might just add to the above, that a Baptist min- 
ister is now preaching regularly in the city of Boston, 
whose pulpit is on the very spot of ground where his 
brethren, for preaching the same doctrines he is now 
preaching, were so shamefully scourged at the whip- 
ping post ! 

The Baptists have continued as the firm, unflinch- 
ing, undeviating advocates for perfect liberty of con- 



PERSECUTIONS IN VIRGINIA. 259 

science to all the family of man. Thank God ! we 
live to see this glorious principle triumphant in 
America. May our children live to see it triumphant 
throughout the world ! 

I will give yet one more quotation : 

THE SUFFERINGS OF BAPTISTS IN VIRGINIA — DEFENCE 
OF THREE BAPTIST MINISTERS BY PATRICK HENRY. 

"^Numerous instances of persecution for con- 
science's sake occurred in different parts of the 
United States, from the time of Williams' sufferings 
onward to the Declaration of Independence, July 
4th, 1776. In Virginia, as late as 1768-75, Baptists 
suffered from Episcopal persecutions. Preaching 
contrary to law was construed into a breach of the 
peace, and devoted ministers were incarcerated in 
common with the vilest men. June 4th, 1768, three 
men were arraigned as disturbers of the peace ; and 
the prosecuting attorney brought this charge against 
them : ' May it please your worship, these men are 
great disturbers of the peace ; they cannot meet a 
man on the road, but they must ram a text of Scrip- 
ture down his throat.' " 

The following instance of persecution seems to 
have been one of the last struggles of the demon, 
just before the Declaration of Independence. The 
facts were published by John M. Peck, in the Baptist 
Memorial, in 1845 : 

" Go back to the period just prior to the Declara- 
tion of Independence. Imagine yourself in the old 
court-house at Fredericksburg, Spottsylvania county, 



260 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Virginia. The king's judges are upon the bench, 
in great dignity, and the king's attorney is present 
to aid in dealing justice to all offenders. Numerous 
are the spectators on the present occasion, for three 
ministers are to be tried for no other offence than — 
'preaching the gospel of the Son of God/ contrary to the 
statute in that case provided, and consequently dis- 
turbers of the peace. The thunders which soon re- 
verberated in the revolution had begun their mutter- 
ings, and many were the brave hearts in that audi- 
ence indignant at what was transpiring, and at the 
impending fate of those inoffensive men, which ap- 
parently nothing could avert. But whilst the por- 
tentous preparations are going on within the court- 
house, a plain man dismounts his horse at the door. 
This was Patrick Henry, beginning to be known as 
a talented, patriotic lawyer. He had heard of this 
approaching trial, and, true to his noble principles, 
unsolicited he had ridden fifty or sixty miles from his 
residence in Hanover county, to volunteer his ser- 
vices in defence of these prisoners. No one can tell 
the feelings which agitated his noble heart at that 
time. "What might seem to the common observer 
of little consequence, the punishment of three unim- 
portant men, to him was freighted with moment, as 
embracing the principles of the revolution. 

" As Henry entered the court-room, unknown to 
most present, and attracting no attention, the clerk 
was reading the indictment, in a slow, formal man- 
ner, in harmony with the august court assembled. 
He pronounced the crime with emphasis — 'for 
preaching the gospel of the Son of God.' The reading 



DEFENDED BY PATRICK HENRY. 261 

of the indictment finished, the prosecuting attorney 
submitted a few words, all he thought necessary to 
convict the prisoners, and all which would have been 
necessary under ordinary circumstances. The judges 
were about to pronounce the ordinary verdict of con- 
demnation, when Henry, who had entered the bar 
among the lawyers, arose, stretched out his hand, 
and received the paper. The first sentence of the 
indictment, which was being read as he entered, 
and had fallen upon his ear, was — 'for preaching 
the gospel of the Son of God I ' This was his key note. 
He commenced : 

" * May it please your worships : I think I heard 
read as I entered this house, the paper I now hold 
in my hand. If I have rightly understood, the king's 
attorney of this county has framed an indictment for 
the purpose of arraigning and punishing by impris- 
onment three inoffensive persons, before the bar of 
this court, for a crime of great magnitude, as dis- 
turbers of the peace. May it please the court, what 
did I hear read ? Did I hear it distinctly, or was it 
a mistake of my own? Did I hear an expression, as 
if a crime, that these men, whom your worships are 
about to try for a misdemeanor, are charged with — 
what?' and continuing in a low, solemn, heavy tone, 
* for preaching the gospel of the Son of God ! Pausing 
amid the most profound silence and breathless aston- 
ishment of his hearers, he slowly waved the paper 
three times around his head, then lifting up his 
hands and eyes to heaven, with extraordinary and 
impressive energy he exclaimed, 6 Great God ! ' The 
exclamation — the action — the burst of feeling from 



262 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

tlie audience, were all overpowering. Mr. Henry 
resumed : 

" ' May it please your worships : In a day like 
this, when Truth is about to burst her fetters — when 
mankind are about to be raised to claim their natural 
and inalienable rights — when the yoke of oppression 
which has reached the wilderness of America, and 
the unnatural alliance of ecclesiastical and civil 
power is about to be dissevered — at such a period, 
when liberty, liberty of conscience, is about to awake 
from her slumberings, and inquire into the reason 
of such charges as I find exhibited here to-day in 
this indictment ! * * ■ ' 

" Another fearful pause ; while the speaker alter- 
nately cast his sharp, piercing eyes upon the court 
and the prisoners, and resumed : 

" ' If I am not deceived, according to the contents 
of the paper which I hold in my hand, these men are 
accused of ' preaching the gospel of the Son of God ! ' 
Great Goal!' 

" Another long pause, during which he waved the 
indictment around his head, while a deeper impres- 
sion was made on the auditory. Resuming his 
speech — ' May it please your worships: There are 
periods in the history of man when corruption and 
depravity have so long debased the human character, 
that man sinks under the weight of the oppressor's 
hand, and becomes his servile, his abject slave; he 
licks the hand that smites him ; he bows in passive 
obedience to the mandates of the despot, and in this 
state of servility he receives his fetters of perpetual 
bondage. But, may it please your worships, such a 




= ■ 



DEFENDED BY PATRICK HENRY. 265 

day has passed away ! From the period when our 
fathers left the land of their nativity for settlement 
in these American wilds, for liberty — for civil and 
religious liberty — for liberty of conscience to wor- 
ship their Creator according to their conceptions 
of Heaven's revealed will ; from the moment they 
placed their feet on the American continent, and 
in the deeply imbedded forests sought an asylum 
from persecution and tyranny — from that moment 
despotism was crushed ; her fetters of darkness 
were broken, and Heaven decreed that man 
should be free — free to worship God according to 
the Bible. Were it not for this, in vain have been 
the efforts and sacrifices of the colonists ; in vain 
were all their sufferings and bloodshed to subjugate 
this new world, if we, their offspring, must still be 
oppressed and persecuted. But, may it please your 
worships, let me inquire once more, for what are 
these men about to be tried? This paper says, 'for 
preaching the gospel of the Son of God ! ' Great 
God! for preaching the Saviour to Adam's fallen 
race ! ' 

" After another pause, in tones of thunder he in- 
quired, ' What law have they violated V Then, for 
the third time, in a slow, dignified manner, he lifted 
his eyes to heaven and waved the indictment around 
his head. The court and the audience were now 
wrought up to the most intense pitch of excitement. 
The face of the prosecuting attorney was pale and 
ghastly, and he appeared unconscious that his whole 
frame was agitated with alarm ; and the judge, with 
a tremulous voice, put an end to the scene, now be- 
12 



266 AU0BI0GRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

coming extremely painful, by the authoritative com- 
mand — ' Sheriff ', discharge those men! 9 " 

These quotations are but a little out of the mass 
of such as might be brought forward to show the 
character of the early Baptists of America, and the 
persecutions they suffered in the cause of Christ and 
soul-liberty, but I have not space for more, and will 
point the reader who may wish farther reference on 
the subjects to such books as " The Convert's 
Guide," "Baptist Denomination," "Baptist Mar- 
tyrs," "History of the "Welsh Baptist," and "Bene- 
dict's History of the Baptists," etc. 

It may be easily seen that from the abundance of 
such matter, upon which I can lay my hands, and from 
the stirring character of the subject itself, I could 
readily present such thoughts, facts, arguments and 
reflections, as would not only relieve the name of 
our denomination from odium, but exalt it in the 
eyes of the people, and show where the real bigotry 
and persecution was, and where it always had been. 
I made free use of historical quotations, and piled 
on the applications, doing all in my power to make 
them stand up before the people like a mountain of 
glory. Whether I succeeded in this or not, one 
thing is certain, we breathed more freely afterwards, 
and by many were regarded with more respect. 

While laboring in the Gate City an unpleasant 
experience occurred with the same Pedo-Baptist 
minister who was concerned with me in a debate at 
C * * *. I preached a sermon in defence of Baptist 
doctrine, and, as it had been previously announced, 
this minister, who was then in the city, and who 



NEWSPAPER ARTICLE. 267 

did not want our doctrines defended, sent a reporter 
to take notes of my discourse, with the view of mak- 
ing a reply to them. When he gave his discourse 
in reply he declared, among other things, that he 
did not believe that immersion was baptism at all, 
and that no such thing was anywhere warranted in 
the Scriptures. 

Immediately after this an article came out in the 
city paper which in substance was about as follows : 

"PERSONAL. 

" The Rev. Mr. * * *, who has lately been dis- 
cussing the subject of baptism in this city, said, not 
long since, near the town of C * * *, in the hearing 
of many witnesses, while discussing the same sub- 
ject there : ' I wish to have it distinctly understood 
that I believe in immersion as valid baptism, and I 
believe it just as strongly as any Baptist brother 
there is present ; but I am going to show you that 
there are other Scriptural modes of baptism.' 

" He now tells us in his last discussion : * I do not 
believe that immersion is baptism at all ; no such 
thing is anywhere warranted in the Scriptures.' 

" Will this divine now be so kind as to tell the 
public which one of these two opposite statements 
expresses his real sentiment ?" 

What his real sentiment was I never learned. 



CHAPTER XXIY. 

BAPTISM OF A NUN, AND TROUBLE WITH THE CATHO- 
LICS — IMMENSE CROWD AT THE WATER — THOUGHTS 
ON NUNNERIES — CONVERSION OP AN INFIDEL — 
HOW IT HAPPENED — HIS EXPERIENCE — AN INFIDEL 
CLUB BURNING THEIR BIBLES — THE CONVERTED IN- 
FIDEL CALLED TO THE MINISTRY — HIS DEATH — THE 
SHARPERS OF THE LOWER RAPIDS, AND HOW THEY 
MANAGED — WARNINGS TO YOUNG MEN — A THOUGHT 
ON PREACHING — A WEDDING IN CHURCH — CONVER- 
SION OF MOST OF THE WEDDING PARTY — BAPTISM 
OF A LANDLADY, AND THREATS OF HER HUSBAND — 
HOW IT ENDED — THE FINANCIAL CRASH OF 1857-8 
— HARD TIMES — PROVIDENTIAL SUPPLY — REFLEC- 
TIONS. 

While I was preaching in Keokuk, there was an 
intelligent young Catholic lady, who was providen- 
tially employed in a Protestant family, through 
whose influence she was induced to attend our 
meetings. She had been well educated in a Catholic 
convent, and had already taken the white veil in a 
nunnery; but as she listened to the preaching of the 
gospel, the Lord opened her heart to attend to the 
things spoken. She repented of her sins in deep 
sorrow, and after receiving suitable instruction in 
the wav of salvation, much concern being felt for 






BAPTISM OF A NUN. 269 

her, she professed to have found peace in believing, 
and requested baptism. 

This was soon known to the Catholics. The fact 
of her having taken the white veil, and the expecta- 
tion that she would soon take the black one, made 
her case doubly aggravating to them. They looked 
upon it as an awful affair, and raised a tremendous 
excitement about the matter, declaring that if 
they ever could get their hands upon her they 
would give her such a baptism that she would never 
want another. They made so many threats of 
violence that she was in fear for her life, and by her 
own request we kept her secreted among us, to 
preserve her from outrage. 

On the other hand, her case found deep sympathy 
with the Protestants, for they felt that in being 
saved from taking the black veil she was rescued 
from a fate worse than death itself. On the day 
when she was to be baptized we had a number of 
other candidates, and in view of the threats of the 
Catholics, we found it necessary, in order to allay 
fears and provide for general safety, to procure a 
police-guard, as an escort, to march with us from 
the place of worship to the river. 

The First Baptist Church having a number of 
candidates to baptize at the same hour, its congre- 
gation met us at the water; and as a general ex- 
citement had been produced in the city about the 
threats of the Catholics, there was a grand rush to 
the river to see the ordinance administered, or wit- 
ness the row, if there should be one. The numbers 
in the crowd of spectators that gathered along the 



270 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

wharf were variously estimated at from six to 
ten thousand people. It was a motley throng — 
merchants, clerks, shop-keepers, mechanics, day- 
laborers, hotel-boarders, strangers, doctors, lawyers, 
and preachers, Protestants and Catholics, saints and 
sinners, gentlemen, rowdies, wags, ruffians, women 
and children — all were there. In fact, it seemed 
that the inhabitants of the whole city, with all the 
strangers in it, had been stirred together in one 
vessel and poured out upon the river's side. It was 
a stirring time ; and as it afforded an extra oppor- 
tunity to make an appeal to the people, it was 
improved to the best advantage. The Catholics 
were present in pretty strong force, but they were 
so overawed by the masses and the presence of the 
city police, that they were obliged to hear the 
appeal, witness the immersion of the nun, and con- 
tent themselves as best they could with grating 
their teeth, muttering their curses, and leaving us 
unharmed. 

The young lady was again kept out of sight for a 
while, until the excitement seemed to have died 
away, when she shifted her quarters, and I lost 
sight of her, to see her, I suppose, no more ; for, 
some time after I left Keokuk, I learned that by 
continued perseverance and repeated promises the 
Catholics had finally succeeded, through the aid of 
her relatives, in getting her among them again, and 
placing her in a nunnery at Dubuque. 

Truly, there cannot be a much greater folly, not 
to say wickedness, in anything, than there is in 
those abominable institutions called nunneries. To 



CONVEHSION OF AN INFIDEL. 271 

think of a young lady, who is just in the prime of 
life's beauty and in the full glow of healthful 
spirits, designed by her Creator for happiness and 
usefulness in the world, thus coaxed, teased, and 
befooled into a nunnery — to take the black veil, 
live in imprisonment, in gloomy and solitary seclu- 
sion, under vows of perpetual chastity, all of which 
is contrary to nature, to say nothing of what may 
be her experience behind the veil — is, with me, 
calculated to stir my pity, and move my soul to 
feelings of abhorrence ! Rather than see a daughter 
or relative of mine take such a step, I would see 
her in her grave ! And I pray God that he may 
thoroughly purge our land, by the saving power of 
his gospel, from all such hot-beds of iniquity. 

"While I was preaching very loud in our chapel- 
room one night, a young man, who was a stranger 
in the city, was carelessly walking the street with- 
out any particular object in view, and overheard 
me. Supposing that something unusual was going 
on within, motives of curiosity led him to turn his 
course, and enter the sanctuary of God. "While 
listening to the discourse he was suitably impressed, 
and then next night he came again. 

While I was preaching the Lord applied the 
"Word with mighty power, to his heart, and such 
was his agony that he fell headlong upon the floor. 
"When I invited the seekers forward for prayers, his 
physical prostration was such that he was unable to 
go forward with the others, and I had to assist him 
to the anxious-seat. When he was taken there, he 
wept and cried aloud for me to pray for him. Being 



272 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

very weary from vocal effort just at the time, I said 
to him, " Compose yourself as much as possible, my 
friend, and tell us who vou are, what brought you 
here, and let us know something more about you, 
that we may be able to pray for you moite in- 
telligently." 

He then related what in substance was as follows : 
"I came from Ohio. I have a pious mother, 
who used often to warn me against wickedness ; 
and when I left home, some two or three years ago, 
to try my fortune alone, she gave me a Bible, with 
the request that I would keep it carefully and read 
it often, and I promised her that I would do so. 
I was soon employed in running on the river, and 
ever since then steamboating has been my business. 
This kind of a life has thrown me into the company 
of rowdies, gamblers, drinkers, swearers, and nearly 
every class of wicked persons, and I became a vile 
sinner, wholly disregarding the counsels of my 
mother, and entirely neglecting my Bible. 

" Our boat lies up for winter at any town where 
it happens to freeze in. Last winter it froze in 
at Quincy. "While there I fell in with a lot of 
young men who had formed an infidel club, and I 
joined it. This club met occasionally and held 
meetings. Its exercises consisted chiefly in speeches 
and songs, which were sung in derision of religion. 
At length a meeting was appointed, at which each 
one of the club was to burn his Bible, and in the 
mean time a song was to be gotten up by one of the 
company, to be sung on the occasion, while the 
Bibles were burning. Each one was to burn his 



AN INFIDEL CLUB BURNING THEIR BIBLES. 273 

own Bible. When the meeting occurred the stove 
was heated very hot, in mock representation of the 
fiery furnace which was prepared for the burning of 
the Hebrew children. We formed a circle by join- 
ingihands, and promenaded around the stove, sing- 
ing the song, while the Bibles were burning. Only 
one Bible was burned at a time, and when that one 
was consumed, the circle would halt until another 
one of the club would throw in his Bible, when the 
singing and promenading would be renewed. 

" When I saw the first one thrown into the flames, 
it made me shudder ! I thought of my Bible, which 
had been presented to me as the affectionate gift of a 
kind mother — of my promise to keep it carefully 
and to read it — of her pious counsels, and of my 
broken vows, until my feelings were distressed. 
The circle of infidels seemed to me like a company 
of damned spirits reveling in the orgies of hell. 
My heart panted as I thought my turn would soon 
come, and I feared I could not muster hardihood 
enough to burn my Bible. I would have given 
anything to have been away from the place, but 
there seemed to me no chance for backing out ; I 
was ashamed to do that. I tried to encourage my- 
self with the thought that some of my comrades 
were, perhaps, burning a mother's gift, and that it 
would be no worse for me to do so ; but I found 
little comfort in that. 

" My turn came, and I threw the sacred gift; into 

the fire ! As I saw its holy pages curl and squirm 

as things of life amid the devouring flames, my 

feelings were horrible, and I turned my eyes away 

12* 



CONFESSION OF A CONVERT. 275 

from the hellish sight ! My thoughts and feelings 
were not known to the others, however, and the 
song and circle moved on until all the Bibles were 
burned, and the remainder of the evening was spent 
in ridicule, solemn mockery, and other kinds of 
sinful mirth. 

"I resolved, when I left the club-room that night, 
that I would never enter it again ; but as long as I 
remained in Quincy, I could not rid myself of the 
company and influence of those young men, and on 
that account I was glad when the river opened and 
let us away. 

" This winter our boat is frozen in at Keokuk, 
and I am spending the winter here ; but somehow I 
can't keep out of bad company, even here. I have 
been gambling considerable, and have spent my 
evenings chiefly at the saloons and card-tables. I 
was loitering about the streets last night, and as I 
passed this way, I heard a man speaking very loud, 
and turned in here to see what was the matter. I 
went home and told my wife that I had been to 
meeting, and was much interested, and she was sur- 
prised, supposing I had been to the saloons as usual. 
I told her I was going to the same meeting to-night, 
and persuaded her to come along ; " and pointing to 
a woman who sat among the anxious, and was weep- 
ing bitterly, he burst into tears and said, " Here she 
is, a poor sinner like myself," and burying his face 
in his hands, he sat down exclaiming, " Oh, do pray 
for her and for me ! " 

By this time God's people were all on fire with 
interest, and we bowed together and had such a long 



276 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and earnest season of prayer as seldom occurs. I 
then dismissed the assembly, that we might go to 
our homes ; but such was the interest that the peo- 
ple would not leave, and we had another season of 
prayer. I then dismissed the second time, but they 
would not leave yet ; and such was the prayerful 
interest, that we did not disperse until near two 
o'clock in the morning, when I finally dismissed for 
the third time. It was a praying, struggling time, 
indeed ; the souls of the praying people were unusu- 
ally humbled at the altar in behalf of all the seekers 
present, for there were several others, but more par- 
ticularly in behalf of this young man, for we felt 
that he had walked to the very verge of the pit ; but 
even then we were obliged to leave him sad and 
unsatisfied. Before the next night, however, he 
came into liberty and great joy. Blessed be God ! 
It made rejoicing in heaven and on earth. 

His wife and he afterward joined the church. He 
was ever after a devout Christian, was much beloved 
by the brethren, and finally began to study for the 
ministry. He was a man of marked intellect, and 
of great promise ; but before he entered upon his 
proposed mission of love,. the Lord took him, and 
he was not. He took the consumption, sank to his 
grave, and went home to die no more ! His wife 
still remains to weep upon these mortal shores, but 
lives as a sincere Christian, in expectation of a happy 
reunion, to enjoy which may God finally bring us 
all. Amen, and Amen ! 

Gamblers and counterfeiters used to swarm about 
Keokuk, Montrose, and Nauvoo, in unusual num- 



THE SHARPERS OF THE LOWER RAPIDS. 277 

bers. Keokuk was one of the chief emporiums of 
the West, and travelers to and from all points of the 
compass halted there, and boats unloaded their 
freight there. In some seasons of the year, when 
the water was low, all the steamboat passengers 
were obliged to land at Keokuk or Montrose, and 
pass around the " lower rapids" by land. Those 
scamps swindled and gambled their living from the 
traveling public, and were always watching like so 
many sharks for a chance to gull somebody. They 
would draw a stranger on unsuspectingly, by form- 
ing his acquaintance, getting him into a saloon, un- 
der the pretext of taking only a social glass, then at 
the billiard or card table to while away a little time, 
or lead him on by other artful devices until he would 
become intoxicated with liquor or excitement, when 
his capital would be wrecked, his character and 
prospects ruined, and he would be ready to curse 
God and die ! These fellows frequently shifted their 
quarters up and down the river from Montrose to 
Quincy, and sometimes when these places got too 
hot for them, they would retire from travel awhile, 
and hive up among the New Jerusalem saints at 
Nauvoo. 

Many are the unwritten histories of the remorse 
and ruin of men, which had their origin and progress 
in the crafty doings of those deceitful rascals. Sev- 
eral such wrecks of humanity were saved from the 
jaws of death by our meetings. Many are the young 
men of promise who have forsaken the sober and 
pious counsels of their fathers and mothers, con- 
temned their Bible, and have been caught in the 



278 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

webs and wiles of those wicked men ; and I would 
to God that the experience related by the young 
man in our meeting would prove a timely and solemn 
warning to all young men who may read it. Young 
man ! beware, lest you fall into the same evil net. 

Notwithstanding our wholesome laws, such char- 
acters haunt our principal towns and cities even yet, 
and it is an easy matter to fall into their company. 
They may be seen hanging about those mouths of 
hell, called saloons and groceries; and I beseech 
you, young man, for the sake of your friends, and 
for the sake of your own soul and body, to shun 
them as you would a cave of venomous reptiles; 
shun the cup trey drink, and the foul dens they 
inhabit, if you have any care for your own welfare, 
for time or for eternity. Their very steps take hold 
upon death, and you cannot get nearer to the pit of 
hell upon this earth than by entering those groceries 
and saloons. 

The experience which has been related is suggest- 
ive of another subject — the true style of preaching. 
If this young man had not overheard my preaching 
from the street, and had not supposed that something 
was the matter, he would not have come into the 
meeting ; but as it was, he did come, and he found 
out that something was the matter sure enough, and 
the Spirit showed him that the matter was at his 
own heart, the very last place he would have thought 
of looking in order to find it. I will not be so pre- 
sumptuous as to attempt giving a full discourse on 
homiletics ; but a practical thought or two may not 
be amiss. The delivery should ordinarily be in a 



A THOUGHT ON PREACHING. 279 

voice so strong and full, and with a pronunciation so 
clear and distinct that the hearers may understand 
all you say, without the effort of straining their ears 
to hear. If such an effort is necessary, the passive 
hearers, who compose a large part of every audience, 
will receive no benefit. I suppose I must have been 
preaching quite loud when the young man heard me 
from the street ; so that, in this case at least, it may 
be truly said that loud preaching was a means of 
great mercy. 

On one occasion, when a house of God was 
thronged, and so many were standing around the 
windows outside that those who were the most distant 
from the pulpit were unable to hear the low voice 
of the preacher, sufficiently to distinguish one word 
from another, he at length lifted up his voice, and 
emphasized the single word " Lost ! " There was 
one wicked man, who, with others, clearly heard the 
word pronounced ; and though it was the only one 
which he understood during the whole sermon, it 
slew him as a sinner. The Spirit applied that word 
to his soul — "Lost ! " The word seemed to echo 
in his ears. He tried to feel indifferent, but he could 
think of nothing but the word " Lost !" It suggested 
to him the future woes of the damned, and sounded 
through his soul as if it were a death-knell from eter- 
nity to his immortal spirit, to summon him to the 
regions of endless death. He tried to sleep, but that 
terrible word "Lost!" was ever* before his mind as 
plainly as though it were written in flaming letters of 
fire upon the skies. He became miserable, nor did 



280 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

he find rest until as an humble penitent he sought 
for mercy at the feet of Christ. 

" So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by 
the Word of God;" *and says God to Isaiah, " Cry 
aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, 
and show my people their transgressions, and the 
house of Jacob their sins." f The word " lost" was 
the only word in that sermon which could have pos- 
sibly done that sinner any good, for it was the only 
one he heard. It is true that God might convict a 
sinner by so faint a sound as the hum of a bee ; but 
this is not His plan, for it has pleased Him, " by the 
foolishness of preaching to save them that believe."{ 
Let us see to it, then, that as ministers we preach it 
truly; that we be not downy-mouthed and time- 
serving ; that we do not cushion the face of God's 
gospel hammer with finery, to prevent its blows 
from hurting, or that we do not deal with sinners 
with gloves on our hands — we are too near eternity 
for trifling thus ; but let us present the bare-handed, 
sin-killing and sin-provoking truth, in that plain, 
pungent, earnest style that will search the sinner's 
heart, show him his sins, awake his conscience, and 
alarm his soul ; " not with enticing words of man's 
wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of 
power." § 

One evening during my pastoral term at Keokuk, 
just as I had closed a sermon to my congregation, 
ten gentlemen an<J ladies who were fashionably 

* 1 Rom. x : 11. f Isa. lviii : 1. 

X 1 Cor. i : 21. § 1 Cor. ii : 4 



A WEDDING IN CHURCH. 281 

dressed entered the congregation, walked up the 
aisle, and pressed toward the pulpit. As they were 
entire strangers to me, I was utterly astonished at 
their maneuvers, especially at their coming into 
church at such a time of night, when the meeting 
was nearly out. One of the party stepped up and 
reached me an unsealed envelope. As I opened it 
the mystery was solved. It contained a marriage 
license, in which was inclosed five dollars. After 
telling the audience what was to occur, I invited 
the bride and groom to step forth, which they did, 
each with an attendant, when I repeated a marriage 
ceremony, and pronounced them one until death 
should separate them. After the closing ceremonies 
I exchanged greetings and well-wishes with the 
newly-married pair, and said to them, that as they 
had now been, as I hoped, happily united with each 
other, I prayed that they might also both be wedded 
to Christ. Said I, " We are now holding meetings 
here every night, and I offer you my warmest invita- 
tion to come out and attend them; their object is 
to do the people good, and I hope they may prove a 
great benefit to you." I was then introduced to 
each one of the company, and invited them all to 
attend our meetings. One of the females, who was a 
fine-looking, portly, fashionable lady, was, I was 
told, the landlady of a hotel in the city. 

After this the company attended meetings for 
many nights in succession ; the Lord gave repent- 
ance, and one after another sought the Saviour until 
nearly all of them came out in religion. It was in 
the winter time, and w^hen the landlady was soon 



282 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

after received for baptism, to be baptized tbe follow- 
ing Sabbath, in tbe Mississippi, ber husband, the 
landlord, sent me a word of warning, to the effect 
that if I baptized his wife in that way, he would 
surely shoot me. I did not know the landlord, and 
on getting this word I talked to the brethren about 
the matter. They said he was a resolute and des- 
perate man, and that they scarcely knew what to 
advise me. All the brethren and sisters who were 
knowing to the message felt uneasy ; my wife, in 
particular, felt quite dubious, and very much ques- 
tioned whether or not it was my duty, under the 
circumstances, to attempt to baptize the lady; but 
on deliberation I concluded that it was my duty to 
baptize her, as well as all others who believed in 
Jesus and asked it at my hands, because it was the 
command of God ; and feeling satisfied that while 
acting in obedience to Him, He would preserve me, 
I resolved to administer the ordinance and leave the 
result with Him. 

When the congregation finally adjourned to the 
river, circumstances seemed to have combined to set 
forth the attempt in the most unfavorable light. It 
was raining in torrents; and a strong east wind, 
which was driving the rain in our faces, had also 
drifted the mush ice upon the shore so thick that 
we had not a little perplexity and delay in opening 
a baptistry through it ; but we finally succeeded, 
and the landlady and several others were baptized, 
without our being molested by any shooting. 

The wife of one of the deacons afterward went with 
her in an omnibus to assist her home, and to their 



HARD TIMES. 283 

surprise, when they arrived the husband waited upon 
them at the door, received them very kindly, and 
said nothing about shooting, nor did he ever after- 
ward. But the Lord soon shot him. He came out 
to the meeting, was soundly converted to God, and 
the very next Sabbath he himself was baptised ! 

Thus through the medium of a wedding in church 
were a number of souls brought to Christ. I am 
glad to see that the custom of having weddings in 
church is becoming more common, and I wish that 
it might everywhere prevail. 

The financial crash of 1857-8, and the hard times 
which followed during my stay at Keokuk, made 
my thousand-dollar salary come up minus. My 
brethren and friends would have gladly paid it, but 
they were nearly all either entirely bankrupt or 
almost hopelessly embarrassed, as were other people 
generally, and during my stay I shared embarrass- 
ments with them. Living in the city was expensive, 
and we were often taxed to our utmost to keep up a 
decent appearance, and hold out in the struggle to 
keep our heads above the waves. In such seasons 
the believer realizes more than commonly that 
" God is our refuge and strength, a very present 
help in trouble/' * 

I recollect that about this time, when our larder 
had run almost as low as that of the good widow of 
Sarepta once did,f and while I was sitting on my 
porch one day, wondering how I should provide for 
the wants of the morrow, a man drove up and in- 

* Psalm xl : 1. \ 2 Kings iv : 2. 



284 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

quired, "Is this where the Rev. Samuel Pickard 
lives?" 

Said I, "Yes, sir." 

Said he, u I was ordered to leave you some flour 
and other things. Where shall I unload them ? " 

I told him that he must have got the wrong name 
and come to the wrong place, as I had ordered no 
such things from any one ; but he said that he had 
no doubt about the matter whatever, and that he 
knew that the things were for me ; so he unloaded 
them and went his way. 

I never could learn who sent the things ; but it 
was a good and timely store of substantials, which 
fed us many days, and we ate it with gratitude to 
the unknown donor, in remembrance of Him who 
fed Elijah by the ravens,* and in realization of the 
divine counsel and promise, " Trust in the Lord, 
and do good ; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and 
verily thou shalt be fed." f 

Had I space, I would further illustrate these and 
their kindred Scriptures by many incidents which 
I could give ; but I have not, and I refer the reader 
to "Muller's Life of Trust." 

* 1 Kings xvii : 6. f Isa. xxxvii : 3. 



CHAPTEK XXV. 

UNDER APPOINTMENT OF THE HOME MISSION — VISITING 
ASSOCIATIONS — FINDS A VERY MISERABLE LODGING — 
CHICKEN AND POTATOES, ETC. — LIBERALITY OF WEST- 
ERN BRETHREN. 

In the spring of 1859, I took an appointment from 
the Home Mission Board of New York, to labor as 
a traveling missionary or evangelist in south-eastern 
Iowa, and was succeeded in the pastorate at Keo- 
kuk by a Brother B * * * , of Missouri. He had 
helped us to a considerable extent in revival efforts 
while I was pastor, and we supposed him a suitable 
man ; but the subsequent history of the Second 
Church was unfortunate. The settlement turned 
out unhappily for both pastor and church ; but as 
this is no part of my narrative, I will not dwell 
upon it. 

My principal field embraced Lee, Jefferson, 
Henry, and Yan Buren counties ; though I was at 
liberty to visit any section in the south-eastern part 
of the State. My business was to hold meetings 
with feeble churches, preach in -destitute places, 
and organize new churches. 

My salary was to be $600 a year, a part of which 
I was to raise on the field, and the remainder to be 
paid by the Board at New York. 

I now felt that I was in my chosen element. I 



286 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

moved from point to point, holding protracted meet- 
ings, and though. I worked hard I enjoyed it greatly. 
During the year I traveled a great many miles, held 
many meetings, organized several new churches, and 
baptized a great many persons. 

The statistics of my labors for this year I cannot 
now remember. I sent in a report of my labors to 
the Home Mission Board, and afterwards saw it 
published in an Eastern religious journal, but can 
not now lay my hands upon it. 

During the fall of this year I visited seven Baptist 
associations in tke western and more sparsely popu- 
lated part of the State. On getting pretty well 
back, the roads were few, and the accommodations 
for travelers were miserable. 

While making one of those tours westward to 
attend the meeting of the E * • * * Association, hav- 
ing sent appointments ahead along the route for 
preaching, with the view of improving the time, I 
preached at a town called Chariton, in the evening, 
where my traveling companions were increased 
until our company was eight in number, including 
our beloved father W * * *, who was an aged min- 
ister, and his wife. 

The next morning at sunrise we all set out to- 
gether to go to the place of the association, which was 
yet about forty miles distant. We had two preaching 
appointments on the route during the day, and as the 
roads were bad, and the weather warm, we had to 
travel slowly, but had to keep moving in order to 
meet them, so that we could not possibly find time to 
stop for feed or dinner. At 4 o'clock, in the place 



VISITING ASSOCIATIONS. 287 

of our last appointment, we found only about twenty 
or twenty-five persons present. We were all nearly 
worn out with traveling, and were weak from hun- 
ger, but it fell to my lot to preach, which I did the 
best I could under the circumstances. After we had 
attended to a few items of business with the church, 
relative to the association, I announced to the breth- 
ren that we had all traveled hard since sunrise 
without feed or dinner, and that as both ourselves 
and our horses were faint and weary, we wished 
that they would provide us with refreshments as 
soon as possible. 

At this a large, brawny, overgrown, double-fisted 
brother, with an oval face and long snarly hair, 
arose and said, " I want you all to go home with 
me; I have a plenty for you, and of that that's 
good." 

"But," said I, "here are eight of us with our 
horses, can you accommodate us all ?" 

" Yes," said he, " I can accommodate you all, and 
more, too, for I have a plenty, and of that that's 
good." 

Said I, " that is all that we can ask for." 

After dismission I inquired of him, " In what 
direction is your house ?" * 

" It's right on in the road to the 'sociation," said 
he; and putting a sheepskin on the back of his 
Eosinante, he mounted it and said, " ~Now jest foller 
me, and I'll show you through ;" and away we went. 

We did not like the slovenly appearance of our 
guide, but he had talked so encouragingly about 
having an abundance, " and of that that's good," 



288 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and seemed so hospitable, that we thought that, 
perhaps, after all every thing would be well when 
we got to his house. 

"We had not thought it worth while to inquire 
how far it was to his place, but supposed, of course, 
that it was but a short distance, and as we expected 
to alight at his door in a few minutes we were 
cheered, as with our aching bones and hungry- 
stomachs we thought of a comfortable resting-place 
among his plenteous stores, where there was "a 
plenty, and of that that was good;" but to our sur- 
prise and disappointment he kept going od, and still 
on, mile after mile, until our poor tired and hungry 
horses were almost ready to drop from exhaustion. 
JSTight set in. We finally asked him how much far- 
ther it was. Said he, " It's only a little ways ahead 
now; we'll be there dreckly;" and we urged our 
jaded beasts onward. It grew quite dark, and yet 
no signs of a friendly light or cheerful hearth 
appeared. We were ready to despair. 

" Aint we nearly there ?" shouted one of the com- 
pany. 

" Yes," said the guide, " it's only a leetle ways 
further." 

We kept on, but the " leetle ways" got very long, 
and the darkness and the bad roads made it seem 
longer still. 

I was beginning to fancy that possibly some will- 
o'-the-wisp, or other apparition, was leading us away, 
to be lost and starved in the wilderness, when at 
last we saw a light! Our spirits raised at the sight; 
but on getting to it, what was our disappointment 



FINDS A VERY MISERABLE LODGING. 289 

when we found that instead of taking us to his 
house, he had taken us to a place which was crowded 
with people who were expecting to hear us preach ! 

Said I, " Brother, where is your house ?" 
; " Oh," said he, " it's further on." 

" How far off is it?" I inquired. 

" Oh, it's only a couple of miles," said he, " and as 
soon as this here meeting's out we'll go and have 
supper as quick as possible." 

There was no help for us : the people who were 
there were eager to hear a city preacher, and we 
thought it might be hurtful to disappoint them, so 
we all went in to the meeting. 

It fell to my lot to preach. I was so weak and faint 
that I did not see how I could do it, but there was no 
chance for retreat: I was pressed into the service, and 
was soon discussing the things of the gospel. As I 
advanced in the discourse, the people listened with 
such marked interest that it so inspired me to un- 
usual effort, that my soul soon forgot the body and 
reveled among the delicious things of the Scrip- 
tures ; nor did I think of our mortal wants for up- 
ward of an hour. 

We then dismissed, and again followed our guide. 
Oh, what a long two miles it was to our guide's house ! 
The night had grown darker and more cloudy, 
the roads got worse, and to add to our discomfort, 
we kept getting lost from the guide, who would per- 
sist in keeping too far ahead, so that we kept con- 
tinually getting lost from the track, which obliged 
us sometimes to get out and feel about on the 



13 



290 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ground to find it, and to keep hallooing back and 
forth to know where we were. 

At last we pulled up by a miserable cabin which 
seemed to stand in the edge of a field. It was won- 
derfully open at the top and had a repulsive appear- 
ance, but — " Drive in the yard, brethren," said the 
host, who had just let down the rail fence. 

" Just onhitch there, brethren." 

" Where shall we put the horses?" asked one. 

" Why you'll have to hitch 'em to the fence ! I'm 
sorry to say, I haint got any barn or stable." 

" Well, we must water them," said one, " for they 
are almost famished. Where is your water, brother ? " 

" Well, I haint got any just right here, but down 
the holler a piece there's good water, and we will 
take the horses down there." 

" How far is it," I inquired. 

" It's only about a half a mile," said he. 

" Well,' said I, " I think that is a good distance, 
if you have to carry it so far for family use." 

" Yes," said he, " but there's plenty of it when 
you get there." 

We felt that the horses must have some water, 
and, he leading the way, we led them behind us, and 
after groping our way down a dark hollow for what 
I thought a very long half mile, we found plenty 
of water, " and of that that was good." 

When we returned, there were as yet no signs of 
life about the cabin; the family seemed to be asleep, 
and we found Sister W * * * , the aged lady who 
was with us, still sitting quietly and alone in her 
husband's vehicle. 



FINDS A VERY MISERABLE LODGING. 291 

" I'm sorry I haint got any corn for your horses, 
brethren, but I've got a stack of prairie hay there, 
so jest help yourselves," said our host. 

" Have you no grain of any kind ?" I asked. 

"No," said he^ "I haint got a bit; but that's 
mighty good hay, and there's plenty of it, and you 
can jest take all you want." 

This was, to me, the worst misfortune yet. I had 
a noble horse, and he had been in the shafts since 
sunrise, traveling on heavy roads, without a bite to 
eat, and such was the case with all the horses ; but 
it had to be endured, for we knew of no place 
within our reach where we could better it, and we 
tried to content ourselves as best we could in feeding 
them on dry hay. 

We were then invited into the cabin by our host, 
who, for the want of chairs, set us out some benches 
made of split puncheons. 

The next want was a light, that we might see 
each other's faces ; but there was neither lamp nor 
candle, and our friend went out leaving us all in the 
dark. As he was absent some time I began to 
wonder at such a strange and apparently impolite 
movement ; but at length the mystery was solved. 
He had been to the wood and gathered a back-load 
of dry brush, which he threw into the large fire-place, 
where it was soon roaring and crackling with a 
tremendous blaze and giving light in abundance. 

We now began to take a survey of our quarters. 
The house was built of logs, and had but one room 
and one door, which was made of clapboards and 
swung on large wooden hinges. There was but one 






292 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

small window, to accommodate which one or two logs 
had been chopped out from one of the walls. For 
further ventilation, however, the roof, which was 
only partially covered with clapboards, was so open 
as to admit a handsome view of the sky and beauti- 
ful stars. The floor was made of broad puncheons, 
one of which I noticed was broken, leaving a hole 
large enough for a man to fall through. It looked 
dangerous ; I wondered that some of us had not 
stepped into it when we first came in. 

The north end of the house was mostly cut out 
to make room for the chimney, which was a huge 
pile, built of logs, sticks, stones and mud. A 
vacancy by the chimney, on the outside, had been 
thoughtfully improved into a chicken roost. 

But our survey was soon disturbed in a way which 
was unlooked for. The burning brush waked up 
a host of flies, and bugs, and other vermin from all 
quarters of the cabin. I verily believe there must 
have been a bushel. They lighted on our hands 
and faces, and tried to creep into our nostrils and 
ears, and furnished us with unceasing employment 
and annoyance. 

The house had but two beds, if such they might 
be called, and to one of these our host went and 
waked up his wife. She gave a yawn or two, and 
then crawled out. 

She evidently had not taken off her clothes when 
she went to bed, for she put none on when she got 
up. She had dirty flaxen hair, which hung in 
strings and snarls about her head, and looked as 
though it had not felt a comb for a year ; her feet 



FLOS A VERY MISERABLE LODGING. 293 

and ankles were about the color of prairie mud. 
Her dress-sleeves were but five or six inches long, 
and those short patterns were torn into many slits 
and strings, each of which was so stiff with grease 
and dirt that it would have stood alone with very 
little help. When she was fairly upon her feet and 
had begun to move, I estimated her neat weight at 
something over two hundred pounds ; and when she 
walked across the floor, it explained the circum- 
stance of the broken puncheon. 

As we thus became introduced to her, our pros- 
pects of getting " a plenty and of that that was 
good," were forbidding. She made a fire in a stove,' 
in one corner, and got it very hot, and then threw 
more brush into the fire-place, to revive the light. 
The two fires now combined, as the weather was 
very warm and the room small, made the heat most 
oppressive to all, except the bugs and flies, which 
were more active and lively than ever. She then 
went to the bed and waked up the oldest daughter, 
whose name was Kate. When she arose she proved 
to be a chip from the old block. Her height, dress, 
and general appearance much resembled those of 
the mother, though she was not quite so fat. 

Our attention was now arrested by a terrible 
fracas among our chimney neighbors, the chickens, 
who began to flutter and squall for dear life. We 
prophesied as to the cause of the disturbance, and 
our prophecy was fulfilled when the brother threw 
a large Shanghai rooster on the floor before us, with 
its head off. I thought it a pity to have killed him, 
for he seemed to be a real old stand-by. Kate was 



294 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

sent to the potatoe-patch for further supplies; 
and a pot of water was set on to scald the rooster. 
When the water was hot, the cook set the pot on 
the floor, plunged the chicken into it, and after due 
examination to see that it was well scalded, she 
stripped the feathers off with a vengeance, and threw 
them into the lire, and as she was not over particu- 
lar, she was soon ready to dissect it. 

She then got down to it on her knees, and cutting 
it enough to admit her hand, she reached in, and 
with one mighty surge she jerked the whole inside 
from the carcass, and threw them into the fire also. 
The smell of the burning offals now became very 
offensive, and some of the company stepped out for 
fresh air, but I was too deeply concerned about the 
destiny of the chicken to borrow trouble about such 
trifles, and I was determined to stay by it until the 
last. 

The cook then put the chicken into the pot, 
without washing or singeing, and poured a good 
quantity of water in with it, with the view of mak- 
ing soup. She then inquired of her husband if 
Kate had not got back; and as he said "no," she put 
the pot aside and sat down. I wondered why she 
did not set on the chicken and have it cooking, 
but it appeared that all culinary operations had to be 
suspended until Kate returned. After a while she 
began to get restless, and inquired again for Kate ; 
but she had not come. I inquired how far it was 
to the potatoe-patch, and learned that it was on the 
far-end of the farm, at the distance of about half a 
mile. I suggested that, as it was so far and so dark, 



THE ARRIVAL OF KATE. 295 

she might have got lost, or that something else 
might have happened her, and that probably 
some one ought to go and hunt for her; but 
her father thought she was in no danger, because 
she was so well acquainted with the neighborhood. 

It was now after midnight. I felt sorry for Sister 
W * * * , the aged lady who was with us, as she 
seemed scarcely able to hold up her head; but there 
was no chance but to wait, and to pass the time in 
the most pleasant manner possible, I fell to relating 
anecdotes and stories. 

Suddenly the cook took a new impulse. Getting 
a large, old-fashioned buckeye tray, she filled it with 
meal and water, and setting it on the floor, she 
kneeled down beside it and with her hands mixed 
it into a tremendous batch of corn-dough ; then get- 
ting a large dripping pan, which was about four 
inches in depth and capacious enough to hold a 
peck, she piled the dough into it as long as she 
could make it lie on, and set it in the stove. She 
then inquired again for Kate, but no Kate came yet. 
We knew well enough that it would take until near 
daylight for such a huge mass of corn- dough to 
bake, but we tried to feel resigned. 

Finally, Kate made her appearance with a basket 
of fine large potatoes ; it was a welcome sight to us, 
for we thought that if we could eat nothing else 
we could eat some of them. But the mother and 
daughter peeled them and sliced them without 
any washing, and, alas ! threw them into the pot 
with the rooster ! 



296 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

After the large coffee-boiler was put on it was 
about two o'clock, but everything was now fairly 
underway; the rooster was boiling, the "dodger" 
was baking, the table was being set, and matters 
generally looked encouraging. 

Supper was finally set — sooner than we expected. 
There was a scarcity of dishes, but we easily man- 
aged that by accommodating each other in the way 
of exchanges. The coffee was poured, but it tasted 
and smelled so badly that one sip was enough. We 
tried the chicken and potatoes, but the whole mess 
was so slimed over with pin-feathers, and looked 
and smelled so dirty and disgusting, that none of us 
could eat a bit of it. Our last chance was the corn- 
bread. This the woman cut and passed around, but 
we found that only a slight crust of about an eighth 
or quarter of an inch in thickness had been baked, 
while the remainder was nothing but dough. We 
thought that we must try to eat something, as we had 
told them we were very hungry, and for manners' 
sake we tried to nibble on the crust, but it was a 
sickly nibble. Seeing me shove back my coffee, 
the cook said that if I did not like coffee she could 
give me some buttermilk. I told her I was very 
fond of buttermilk, and would thank her very much 
for a bowl of it. She then took a vessel, and going 
to the churn, which was standing open, she brought 
me about a quart. When I attempted to take a 
sip, I noticed some flies in it, and as I set down 
the bowl and took a knife to lift them out, I hap- 
pened to stir it a little, and found that from top to 
bottom the whole mess was a perfect mixture of 



AN UNPLEASANT NIGHT. 297 

flies, bugs, and buttermilk ! I bad for some time 
been trying to coax my stomacb to be quiet, but 
tbis was too mucb ; I hurried out of doors, feeling 
most deathly sick, and had a hard spell of vomiting. 
The rest of the brethren minced away at the table 
for a few moments longer, but could eat scarcely 
anything. 

When all had left the table, the mother went to the 
beds and awakened the children ; and they tumbled 
out one after another until we saw quite a squad of 
dirty, half-naked urchins about the room. When 
they first saw us they looked all over amazement 
and stupefaction, but in a few minutes they were all 
around the table, and seemed to have forgotten us 
entirely in .the luxuries of the extra meal that was 
before them. The repast was a sweet one for them, 
and in a very little time nothing was left of the old 
Shanghai but the naked hulk. The corn-dough 
was all eaten, and the soup and potatoes, and every 
thing on the table, were licked up as clean as a kitten 
would lick a saucer. 

The table being set aside, beds were spread upon 
the floor, and soon all were trying to sleep, but the 
bedding smelled so sickening that I had not lain 
long before I was obliged to hurry out of doors and 
endure another hard spell of vomiting. I sought for 
some place where I might lie down about the prem- 
ises, but I could find none except where I would be 
exposed to the night air, which I dared not be. I 
went in again to try my bed, but it was no use ; I 
could not endure the stench. Oh, what a long night 
it was ! 

13* 



298 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Fortunately necessity was the mother of inven- 
tion. I laid my valise about two feet from the bed, 
as a support to my head and shoulders, and poking 
my feet and legs under the cover, I put my hand- 
kerchief over my nose, and thus managed to bunk 
down under tolerably sweet circumstances. How- 
ever, I could not get a wink of sleep, nor did my 
companions, generally; and as soon as daylight 
appeared we excused ourselves from staying to 
breakfast, and pushed on to the town of L * * *, a 
distance of fourteen miles, where we fed our horses 
bountifully, got our breakfast, and took a sound 
sleep. 

It seemed strange that notwithstanding the way 
in which the brother lived who tried to entertain us, 
he had a large and excellent farm, and was in toler- 
able circumstances ; but so uncultivated were his 
ideas of comfort that I suppose he really thought, as 
he had told us when he first invited us, that he had 
" a plenty, and of that that's good." 

I will not say that what I have just related is a 
characteristic incident of the traveling minister's 
experience in the "West, but I may safely say that he 
is often obliged to accept very rough and uncom- 
fortable fare, and that he commonly sees twenty 
times as much of cold, coarse reality, as he does of 
romance. 

The objects I had in view in visiting so many as- 
sociations this fall were, first, to aid in raising money 
to liquidate a debt of several thousand dollars on the 
Baptist State Convention of Iowa; and secondly, 
to solicit patronage and circulate documents for the 



LIBERALITY OF WESTERN BRETHREN. 299 

Baptist College at Burlington. These things made 
my travels quite extensive on the frontiers of the 
State. The advantages and comforts we enjoy in 
the older settled parts, it seems to me, can scarcely 
be appreciated without a visit back among the bor- 
der settlers. It was no uncommon thing to see 
people out there, both men and women, attend 
meeting barefooted ; nor was it any less common to 
see ministers preaching without coats on, and some- 
times they preached with their shirt-collars open 
and their sleeves rolled up. 

At one of those western associations I could not 
but be pleased at the liberality of the brethren in 
behalf of the State Convention. The times were 
hard, and money was very scarce — in fact so scarce 
that very little calculation could be made on it, for 
there were but very few in the country who could 
command any ; hence, when the wants of the Con- 
vention were presented, the prospects of getting any- 
thing seemed almost hopeless ; but after the cause 
had been held forth, one brother said, " I have no 
money, but I want to aid the State Mission work, 
and if it will be of any help I will give a three-year 
old colt, worth seventy-five dollars. We gladly 
accepted this generous offer, and it was soon followed 
by others of a similar character. Some of them 
gave calves; some, home-made jeans; others, socks 
and stocking-yarn, and various other things; so that 
when the associational meeting closed we had quite 
a variety store. The three-year old colt and most 
of the things given we turned over to the mission- 
aries, who were thankful to receive them, and the 



300 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

remainder we afterwards put up at auction and sold 
for cash, to apply on the debt; so that altogether it 
made a handsome sum. By such generous conduct 
among the brethren the cause of God has moved 
forward in Iowa, and it has taught us that where 
there is a will there is a way. 

In such labors and travels, and in various revival 
efforts, I spent most of the year. 



CHAPTEE XXVI. 

HOLDING GROVE MEETINGS — NATURE'S MEETING-HOUSES 

— A WISE INVESTMENT OF TWENTY-FIVE CENTS 

THOUGHTS ON GIVING — MEETING AT P. G * * * — BAD 

USAGE — WHAT BECAME OF THE HOG AND FLOUR 

LABORS IN AND ABOUT FORT MADISON — THOUGHTS 
ON CHURCH EXTENSION — BRIEF HISTORY OF THE 
FORT MADISON CHURCH -r- CONVERSATION ON COMMU- 
NION — JOY OF AN OLD LADY ON LEARNING THAT THE 
BAPTISTS WERE ALL IN HEAVEN — EFFECTS OF POUND- 
ING THE BAPTISTS. 

In the spring of 1860 my appointment was renewed 
by the Board of the Home Mission Society of New 
York, and I spent the year following in traveling and 
holding meetings. During this time I witnessed 
under my labors the accession of about two hundred 
members to the churches in the various places where 
my meetings were held. 

It was often the case that we could not get suit- 
able houses in which to hold protracted meetings, 
and we would hold them in some grove. The first 
grove meetings in which I was engaged this year 
lasted about three weeks, in which time about thirty 
souls were added to the church as the result ; and 
as God honored the plan I held a number of such 
meetings during the year with happy success. The 



302 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

novelty of the plan brought out a great many who, 
of course, came for the novelty only ; but yet, with- 
out doubt, the meetings did a great amount of good. 
People would gather in by hundreds, some of them 
coming as far as ten and twelve miles, being enticed 
by the novel and entertaining character of the meet- 
ing. I remember, in one instance, talking to a man 
who was present, who said he had come a distance 
of twelve miles on foot, and he afterward walked 
home the same night, and said that he was well 
paid. 

In the fall of the year, when the weather is favor- 
able, a grove-meeting will draw out more people 
than a meeting will under ordinary circumstances ; 
and to the scattered brethren living West, I will here 
say that you ought not to despair in the thought 
that you have no meeting houses, for in the various 
groves that are around you, the Lord has provided a 
great many large meeting houses. He has made 
for them arched ceilings of the canopy of heaven; 
he has frescoed them with the clouds, and hung 
about their walls and windows, with great artistic 
skill, scenes of pleasant and delightful landscapes, 
and over all the rich festoons and clinging vines from 
nature's smiling garden. But this is not all: he 
warms these audience-rooms with sunshine and 
lights them up with the golden lamp of, day, so that 
you have no sexton to pay and no sexton-work to 
do. These houses of worship are each large enough 
to hold many hundreds of people, without being 
cramped for room, or smothered for want of pure 
air. They are all finished from floor to ceiling, 



HOLDING GROVE MEETINGS. 303 

except the small item of putting in a pulpit and 
seats, which can be done with a very little expense 
and trouble. Now these sanctuaries are waiting for 
use during several months of the year, and you 
ought to raise courage enough to move forward and 
occupy them. 

While I was laboring in one of those grove-meet- 
ings, I was called away to attend an Association, 
and went in company with Brother GL J., who kindly 
took me in his carriage. I happened at the time to 
have but twenty-five cents by me, and as I wanted, 
if possible, to throw something into the hat at each 
collection, the best chance I could think of was to 
get my quarter changed into five cent pieces, and 
make it go the rounds as long as it would last. As 
toll was demanded on our way at a bridge on Skunk 
River, where it was proper for me, for manners' 
sake to pay it, I thought the quarter would have 
to leave me ; but on telling Brother J * * * that it 
was all I had, and that I wanted to save it to throw in 
at the collections of the meeting, he insisted on pay- 
ing the toll, and I got through to the Association with 
my quarter all safe in my pocket. Here, by throw- 
ing five cents into the hat at each collection, it was 
soon all deposited in the Lord's Treasury, and I was 
penniless. It was not long after the last Hye cents 
was gone, however, when a man who was a stranger 
to me, stepped up and greeted me in a very cordial 
manner, remarking that he had seen me before and 
that he had heard me preach, and with little cere- 
mony he left $5 in my hands and went his way. 
Here, reader, is Scripture illustrated again by Provi- 



304 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

dence. I have noticed the incident to enforce a good 
sentiment. 

It is this : However, scanty our purse may be, 
we shall not be unwise if we intrust it all, or at least 
a part of it, to the Lord, for He whose word cannot 
fail has said : " Give, and it shall be given unto 
you, good measure, pressed down, and shaken to- 
gether, and running over, shall men give into your 
bosom." * Be assured, reader, that you will not 
suffer for your generosity; I did not, in this instance, 
but had it returned in a signal manner, and increased 
twenty-fold ; and if I were with you I could relate 
many similar instances of my own experience illus- 
trating the soundness of the same sentiment. I 
know to my own satisfaction that I have always 
prospered best and felt the happiest when I was the 
most liberal with my purse, in God's cause. It is 
possible, of course, for a person to go beyond the 
bounds of sanity in such matters, but it is not proba- 
ble. There is not nearly so much danger of ruin from 
that cause as there is from being struck by light- 
ning. 

I am now well advanced in years, and have known 
a great many liberal brethren, but I never knew a 
single one who had been ruined by his generosity, 
and hence I do not think that any caution of dan- 
ger in that direction is necessary; but I do believe 
that there are many who are keeping themselves in 
poverty by murmuring about the Sabbath collections, 
and singing with their eyes shut when the hat is 

* Luke 6 : 38. 



HOLDING GROVE MEETINGS. 305 

passed around. Such do not give except it be a 
little for shame's sake, and even that little is given 
grudgingly; consequently they do not receive the 
" good measure," which the Lord has promised on 
pther conditions. If they were better stewards of 
what little they have received, it might be said unto 
them, " Well done, thou good and faithful steward, 
thou has been faithful over a few things, I will make 
thee ruler over many things." * 

The next day after this occurrence we started 
back for our grove-meeting, at the distance of thirty 
miles, where we arrived at four o'clock, at which hour 
I preached a sermon, which was followed by other 
religious exercises, and just as the sun was setting 
we baptized seven happy converts. When I went 
to bed that night I felt that truly " the Lord " was 
" my refuge and strength." 

During all these missionary labors I had still kept 
my family in Keokuk. It was an expensive place 
for poor people to live, and especially so with us, as 
our family had become large ; but what little we 
had was there, and as it was the only place we could 
call home, we thought it best to remain there. I 
was expected by the Missionary Board to raise a 
part of my salary among those for whose benefit I 
labored; but the undisciplined and uninformed, 
whom I often fell among, would have it that as I 
was a missionary, I was getting a fine fat salary, of 
perhaps not less than a thousand dollars a year, 
which was paid by some of the rich folks East, who 

* Matt, 25: 21. 



306 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

had such a large amount of surplus money that they 
did not feel it, and as I was making money so fast 
that my family could live in the city, perhaps in 
fashionable life, they thought that such considera- 
tions afforded them a happy excuse for paying me 
nothing. The result was that I was often embar- 
rassed in living ; the four hundred dollars a year 
which I received from the Board being a good part 
of the time my whole dependence. 

In one instance, having gone to spend a few days 
with my family and look a little after its wants, a 
deacon from the P. G * * * church, distant about 
thirty-two miles, called at my house, wishing 
me to hold a meeting with his church, and he 
wanted me to go immediately. I did not see how 
I could leave my family just at that time, as its 
wants were numerous, but he urged so hard and 
promised so encouragingly, and was so determined 
withal to take no refusal, that I finally consented, 
and went. I held a meeting with his people, in 
which I labored about two weeks with all my energy 
and strength, and the result was that about twenty 
souls were added to the church. 

Before I left, a brother who was a licentiate went 
around among the people to get something for my 
remuneration ; but he could not get a single cent 
from any one. He finally plead with the deacon 
who had urged me so hard to hold the meeting to 
pay me fifty cents, but he even refused to do that, 
though he had a considerable amount of money by 
him. At last he found one brother of moderate cir- 
cumstances, who, though he said he had no money 



WHAT BECAME OF THE HOG AND FLOUR. 307 

* 

and could give nothing at that time, would, after he 
butchered his hogs, give me a hog and a sack of 
flour, and that he would deliver them for me at 
Keokuk. With this promise they all took an affec- 
tionate leave of me, and let me go home without a 
single dollar. 

But I must tell how it turned out with the prom- 
ised hog and flour. My family never got them. 
The following winter, however, the brother who had 
promised them came to the city with a load of pro- 
duce, and after selling it out, in order to save paying 
a tavern bill, he hunted up our house and wished to 
get accommodations for himself and team over night. 
"We kept him in the best manner we could. 

His excuse for not bringing the hog and flour 
was that his plans for the season had not succeeded 
as he expected. The substance of it was that he 
had made the mistake of selling off his produce too 
closely, and consequently he did not have enough 
left to spare either the hog or the flour: thus the 
matter ended. The deacon who came after me lived 
only two miles and a half from the church at W. 
P * * *, but it was then struggling very hard to 
build a house of worship, and he kept his member- 
ship for the time at the P. G * * * church, which 
was six miles from him. Of course he could then 
do little or nothing to help the heavily burdened 
church at W. P * * *, because, as he would say, " I 
have to help the church over at P. G * * *, where I 
belong. After a while, however, it turned out that 
when the church at W. P * * * was built, the church 
at P. G * * * attempted to build a house of worship 



308 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

also, but lie then concluded that as he lived so near 
the W. P * * * church it was his duty to unite with 
that. His ability was such that he might have been 
a good help to both churches, but he thus managed 
to get along with doing very little for either ; and 
he still bids fair to get to heaven, if he ever does get 
there, as cheap as a man can. 

Now, reader, if you are seeking to live religion 
on a cheap plan, the one just mentioned may afford 
you some valuable hints. This man was a Ken- 
tuckian. 

Soon after this I held a meeting at another place, 
where I was invited to stop with an old Virginian, 
and though he was quite a wealthy man he gave me 
such miserable lodgings that I was compelled to go 
to a tavern for the safety of my health. There I 
got kept well. 

During my stay I witnessed a number of conver- 
sions and organized a church in the place, but did 
not receive a cent. I expected a tavern bill to pay, 
but the proprietor of the house kindly refused to ac- 
cept it. It is due to say of this wealthy brother, 
however, that he afterward went around among the 
neighbors and collected in my behalf about five 
dollars' worth of meat, Hour, and garden sauce. 

In the labors of the year I held several meetings 
in connexion with the Baptist church and pastor of 
Fort Madison. These meetings were held in and 
around the city at different points, and they were 
highly blessed to the strengthening of the church in 
the city and the salvation of souls. My experiences 
among those brethren and sisters were exceedingly 



BRIEF HISTORY OF THE FORT MADISON CHURCH. 309 

pleasant. I have received many kindnesses among the 
churches from my kindred in Christ, but never was 
treated more nobly than by the members and friends 
of that church. This was a new organization : its his- 
tory is one which is interesting, and one from which 
something may be learned. Though so large a 
place, up to about the year 1857 or 1858 there was no 
Baptist church in Fort Madison. There were some 
ten or twelve Baptist people, but there was no church 
organization of our order. Other denominations, 
however, occupied the ground with more or less 
success. 

In the fall of 1&57-8 the pastor of the Presby- 
terian church took a vacation, and went East on a 
visit, with the intention of being absent a number 
of weeks ; and as the Presbyterian house of worship 
was unoccupied, some of our scattered brethren 
obtained permission to use it for holding some Bap- 
tist meetings. They then sent for the Rev. Morgan 
Edwards, now of Denmark, Iowa, who came to their 
aid and made a protracted effort of two or three 
weeks' duration, which resulted in the conversion of 
seventy or eighty souls. As the congregation was 
made up largely of the Presbyterian element, most 
of the converts being members or friends of Presby- 
terian families, they joined the Presbyterian church, 
which very much increased the strength of that 
body and proved to be of much benefit to it. 

In addition to this, however, as the result of the 
meeting, a Baptist church of seventeen members 
was organized in the court house. Brother Edwards 
was then requested to act as pastor of the little 



310 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

church for the time, and he continued his revival 
efforts in the court house. At the end of the first 
three months, when Brother Edwards closed his 
labors with the church, it numbered about thirty- 
five or forty members, a part of whom had been 
brought to the Lord from among the best uncon- 
verted families in the place. 

Rev. G. J. Johnson, formerly of Burlington, who 
was at the time acting temporarily as pastor at St. 
Louis, was then called to the pastorate. The church 
and pastor were happily united, and both were in an 
eminent degree sacrificing, enterprising, and perse- 
vering, and, as might be expected, they moved on- 
ward, increasing in numbers, grace and strength. 

After Brother J* * * had labored efficiently. for 
some time, he invited me to his assistance, and we 
held meetings together in the court house in the 
city, which were very successful. We then went 
out and stretched a chain of protracted meetings, 
from school- house to school- house, all around the 
city. Beginning near the river at the north, we 
moved around from point to point at a distance of 
from three to six miles of the place, until we closed 
up the siege near the river below. At these places 
men and women came out in religion, and all were 
received as members of the church in the city. 

Thus the pastor continued, with great persever- 
ance and activity, to besiege the city without and . 
storm the castle within, and in less than two years 
from the time the church was organized, it num- 
bered over two hundred members, and had begun 
to build a splendid house of worship. 



TRUE FIELD OP LABOR. 311 

The building of their house was a large under- 
taking, and cost them much time and struggling ; 
but they finally succeeded in erecting an edifice 
which is an honor to the cause, and is one of the 
finest in the State. 

A Campbellite church once flourished there, but 
as the Baptist church went up, the Campbellite 
church went down ; and at the present writing its 
house of worship is desolate, being occupied in the 
basement by the hogs, and in the audience-room by 
the bats and swallows; while the Baptist church 
is still living in prosperity and moving forward. 

I might give, with much profit, the history of 
other churches in Iowa and Illinois, which have had 
a rapid and successful growth upon much the same 
plan of operation ; but this will suffice to show the 
most successful plan by which to operate in order to 
build up a church and save sinners. It also shows 
the elements necessary for a church and pastor to 
have in order to succeed. I believe that, as a 
general rule, where a pastor settles with a church, 
and ties himself in all his labors of visiting and 
preaching to the one little space immediately in the 
one congregation, while unoccupied fields, laden 
with abundant harvests, are all around him and 
within his reach, he is making a great mistake. If 
such ministers and churches wish to see themselves 
strengthened and enlarged, let them take courage, 
be more enterprising, enlarge the field of their 
operations, and thus increase their chances for use- 
fulness and success. If this plan were more com- 
monly followed in the West, I believe that twice as 



312 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

many people would be benefited by the labors of our 
pastors. A pastor might preach to one congregation 
for five years and never have a convert, when, at 
the same time, he might step out and preach a few 
evenings to another congregation, only five miles 
away, and gather a score of souls into the church. 

There are brethren who have proved this by their 
own experience. It must be remembered, too, that 
the church and pastor must be active, and fall of 
the spirit of pious enterprise; they must be engaged 
and ready both to pray and to do, otherwise Zion 
will continually languish. They should attempt 
great things for God, and expect great things from 
God. 

God could convert the world with drones and 
mopers if he wished to, but it is not his plan ; he 
loves to reward those who are the most pious and 
enterprising in his cause. Such he will surely 
prosper, and they shall see Zion enlarged. Then, 
brethren, arise and be doing, and may the Lord 
prosper you. 

"While I was laboring in Fort Madison, a certain 
Pedo-Baptist lady, upon whom I called, expressed 
a strong antipathy to our practice of restricted com- 
munion. She was determined to talk about it to 
her satisfaction, and give the Baptists a good raking. 

She opened the battle very shrewdly. She 
would run on for a moment to tell how well she 
liked the Baptists, how much she admired the most 
of their doctrines and principles, how much she 
liked their style of preaching and the character of 
their worship, and thus praise them up to the moun- 



ARGUMENT ON CLOSE COMMUNION. 313 

tain top; and then, when they were up high, she 
would try to hurl them all down suddenly with 
a mighty crash, by saying that their disgusting 
practice of close communion spoiled it all ! 
- I quietly allowed her to continue this crashing 
process for some time, without making any reply, 
and after she had bounced the Baptists up and 
down to her heart's content, and emptied her mind 
upon the subject, she seemed quite relieved. I then 
introduced the following conversation : 

" Now Sister * * * , will you tell me what are 
your greatest objections to our church communion ?" 

"Why," said she, " your close communion de- 
prives me of a great religious privilege, and it's 
uncharitable." 

"How long have you been connected with the 
church of which you are a member ?" I asked. 

" About ten years," she said. 

" How often does your church have communion ?" 
I asked. 

" Every month," she said. 

" And your people can have the privilege of 
having it as often as they choose, can they not ?" 

" Yes, sir, I suppose they can," said she. 

" Well, as your church is so close by you, I sup- 
pose, then, you commune with it every month, do 
you not?" 

"No, sir; not every month." 

" Do you as often as every three months ?" 

" "Well, I can't say that I do. In fact, I can't 
tell how long it has been since I was at our com- 
munion ; the truth is, there are some in the church 
14 



314 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

that I don't want to commune with, and I haven't 
been at the table for a long time." 

" That is a pity," said I ; " but here is an open 
communion church close by your house. You have 
been living by it a number of years, have you not?" 

"Yes, sir, we have lived here a good while." 

" I suppose," said I, " that they have communion 
as often as every month, do they not?" 

" Yes sir, I think they do." 

" "Well, how often do you commune with them ?" 

" I don't know as js I can't say that I am pre- 
pared to answer just now." 

" Well," said I, " did you ever commune at this 
church at all?" 

" Well," said she, " Mr. Pickard, really, to be 
honest with you, I believe I never did in my life ! " 

" Why, Sister * * * ," said I, " can it be possible ! 
And though you have lived here many years, and 
have been a member of a church close by you, 
which has communion every month, and another 
church at your door where you are invited as often, 
and have still other churches within your reach, and 
though you never commune with any of them, be- 
cause you have no wish to, yet you say that the 
communion of the Baptist church is disgusting, 
and that it deprives you of a great religious privilege ! 
You say also that our practice is uncharitable, while 
at the same time you have never asked our charity, 
and your own testimony declares that you have 
never needed it, as you say' that your own people 
can have the communion as often as they wish it! " 



CONVERSATION ON CLOSE COMMUNION. 315 

" Well, really, Elder," said she, '*' I must confess 
I never saw it in that light before." 

Thus the matter ended. 

I have frequently found people who were anxious 
to make our communion appear as a great scare- 
crow, and such do sometimes succeed in creating a 
prejudice against us, where our doctrine is not un- 
derstood, yet where we have a chance to present it 
coolly and candidly before the people, in the light 
of the New Testament, all the arguments against it 
are flimsy things, and the world may be assured 
that so long as the Bible is revered the doctrine 
must last. 

Alluding to this subject reminds me of rather an 
amusing incident that lately occurred while I was 
holding a meeting over in Illinois. 

While we were in the midst of a revival interest 
in which quite a number were seeking religion, a 
Methodist preacher came along, who instead of fall- 
ing into the work of laboring and praying with us 
for the comfort of the mourners and the conversion 
of sinners, as he should have done, showed more of 
a disposition to raise a dispute, and immediately 
stuck up a challenge for me to a public debate with 
him. 

As I thought he had more boldness than talent, I 
took no notice of it ; nor would I under any cir- 
cumstances have stopped the work of the revival, 
already in progress, to debate with any one. Before 
the man left the place, however, he seemed deter- 
mined to try his little hatchet on the Baptists, and 
gave a discourse against our views. One of his 



316 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

main points was the telling of an old story, which 
has been worn thread-bare, of a dream, which some 
man was said to have told, to joke Elder Knapp. 

There was an old Baptist sister who went to hear 
him, who though a well meaning woman, was said 
to be somewhat afflicted with lunacy. She took a 
seat near the preacher, and showed much concern 
of mind about the discourse, more especially the 
part pertaining to the dream. As he went on to 
tell how the dreamer dreamed that he died and went 
to heaven, and tried to find whether there were any 
Baptist people there or not, and how he looked all 
around, in one direction and in another direction, 
and couldn't find a single one, the old lady's feel- 
ings were wrought up to the most anxious interest, 
for she thought the search was about to be given up 
under the gloomy prospect that there was not a 
Baptist to be found in all heaven. At length the 
speaker said, however, of this remarkable dreamer, 
that he thought he asked the Saviour if there were 
no Baptist in heaven ; when the Saviour took him to a 
place where he opened a trap-door, and told him 
they were all there, holding close communion. 

" Thank God ! " shouted the old lady with de- 
light ; " then they are all there ! " said she. 

Though I was not present, it was said that the 
effect of her sudden burst of feeling turned the 
point of the joke against the preacher, set the con- 
gregation into a glee, and turned the tide in our fa- 
vor; at least it helped to enlist the public sympathy 
more largely in our behalf, and our meeting after- 



CONVERSATION ON COMMUNION. 317 

ward went on with good interest and closed with, 
success. 

I have frequently observed, and many times heard it 
remarked, that our doctrinal opponents are more in- 
strumeutal in making proselytes to the Baptist cause 
when they attempt public arguments against us, than 
Baptists are themselves ; and I believe it to be a 
fact that the more we are pounded the better we 
prosper. A very clear illustration of this occurred 
while I was a merchant. 

One of the little churches of which I was pastor 
at that time was close by the town of C * * * , and 
was surrounded by a strong Methodist community, 
which had a flourishing church near by. The Pre- 
siding Elder in going his rounds of love, appeared to 
take it into his head that our little church had better 
be out of the way, to make room for one that knew 
the way of God more perfectly. He then squared 
himself to the work, opened his batteries against it, 
and said enough, one would have supposed, to have 
blown it into fragments. Among other things, he 
said that the Baptist church was a mere upstart, of 
late origin, and of a mean origin at that, for the 
first Baptists were polygamists, they kept a number 
of wives, etc. 

Being at some distance from the place, the breth- 
ren, who were much disturbed, sent word to me of 
the work of destruction that was going on, and 
thinking that I might be needed to gather up the 
pieces and bury the dead out of the way, I went up 
and a debate took place between us. 

After the Elder left, his brethren, who did not seem 



318 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. * 

satisfied, sent for another man, who they thought 
was a larger light, to give the Baptist another heat. 
He in turn was met by Brother B * * * , a Baptist 
minister from Missouri, and after considerable dis- 
cussion between them the debates ended ; and the 
final result was that the Baptist church went up, 
and the other went down. The Methodist church 
having built a good house of worship in the town 
adjacent, so diminished in strength, and in the sym- 
pathy of the people, that they were unable to clear 
it from a mortgage which was resting upon it, and 
were compelled to sell it to the Baptists to pay the 
debt. We then moved our congregation into it, 
where it has worshiped ever since. 

The Baptist interest is still prospering there, while 
Methodism has died out entirely, and they have not 
had a class, nor even a preaching station, there for 
some years. I felt sorry that they had been so im- 
prudent, for I always regret to see any religious 
society decline ; but so far as we were concerned in 
the unhappy event, we only aimed to act on the 
defensive, and that we were compelled to do to pro- 
tect our church from abuse. 

The lessons of history, however, ought to teach us 
the fact that the interests of religion can not be ad- 
vanced by harsh measures; and we may be sure 
that where the spirit of persecution gets into a 
church there is death in the pot. 

I wish that I might impress this fact upon all my 
brethren. It is better for us to bear patiently all the 
reproaches and hard titles that are heaped upon us 
and our churches, than for us to be the aggressors. 



EFFECTS OF POUNDING THE BAPTISTS. 319 

Forbearance is a Christian virtue. It is better to 
suffer wrong than to do wrong. It is safer to stand 
a siege than to storm a castle. The way to build a 
church is to labor for the conversion of sinners* 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

ENTERS THE ARMY TENNESSEE RIVER — PITTSBURG 

LANDING LAID IN THE HOSPITAL AT HAMBURG 

PROSPECTS OF DEATH RECOVERY APPOINTED HOS- 
PITAL CHAPLAIN — DESCRIPTION OF THE HOSPITAL 

CONVERSION OF A YOUNG MAN DREADFUL CRIES OF 

A WOUNDED MAN WHO WAS DYIXG PRAYING FOR A 

WOUNDED CAPTAIN SOLEMN WARNINGS MOURN- 
FUL INCIDENT OF TRANSPORTING A DEAD HUSBAND 

REFLECTIONS RETURN FROM THE WAR. 

When tlie Rebellion broke out I was aroused with 
the common feeling for the preservation of our 
country, and made speeches in various places to set 
the momentous issues of the day before the people 
in a proper light, and to call them to arms. I felt 
that matters of overwhelming interest were at stake, 
and in the month of February, 1862, I assisted in 
raising a regiment for the war, and volunteered my- 
self. I was promoted to the office of first lieutenant, 
in a company which went out under Captain Archer, 
of Keokuk, a man whom I dearly loved, and whom 
I claimed as one of my sons in the gospel. 

I did not allow my spiritual interest to die while 
I was recruiting, but held night meetings during a 
good part of the time. I felt that I was in a work 
which God would approve, and I went forward in 



ENTERS THE ARMY. 321 

it with all the zest which a full consciousness of 
right and duty could give. 

"When we began to raise our regiment it was after 
the capture of Forts Donelson and Henry, and the 
war spirit had in a measure subsided. This cir- 
-cumstance made it more difficult to raise the regi- 
ment; but we established our rendezvous at Keo- 
kuk, from which we went out in all directions into 
the country and kept at work, sending in recruits 
by squads and parcels, as we could enlist them, 
until our regiment was full. 

My friend and brother, Captain Archer, was finally 
promoted to the well-merited position of colonel, 
which he afterward filled with hi^h esteem from 
those of his command. He acted the true noble- 
man and the Christian throughout the service, and 
my prayer is that he may long live to honor his 
country and his church. 

When spring opened we were ordered to move 
for the theater of war, and embarked upon the 
noble steamer "Warsaw." We stopped at Jefferson 
Barracks long enough to receive our arms, wagons, 
ambulances, and general equipments, and thence 
went aboard the steamer " Continental," and were 
soon on our way to Dixie's Land. 

When the steamer first turned her bow from the 
wharf at Keokuk toward the fields of blood and 
strife, and we were permitted to take a farewell look 
of our weeping friends and relatives upon the shore, 
we were well-nigh overcome with the sense of our 
situation. As we looked forward to the dangers 
and uncertainties before us, and then looked back 
14* 



322 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OP A PIONEER. 

to the loved ones who were weeping for us upon the 
shore, and whom we feared we might never see 
again in the flesh, the fountains of our tears were 
unsealed, and many of us wept with the tenderness 
of children ; but we were confident of the righteous- 
ness of our cause, and the mercy and justice of that 
God who doeth all things well, and felt comforted 
in the thought that " even the very hairs of our 
heads" were "all numbered."* and that we were 
I' of more value than many sparrows."f 

But oh, how many, many tears, have been shed 
over the partiDgs and meetings consequent upon 
the " Great Rebellion," and how many have been 
the sorrows and disappointments ! 

After a prosperous voyage we landed at Hamburg, 
Tennessee, near the northwest corner of Alabama. 
I was delighted with the natural scenery on the 
Tennessee River. It is not a wide stream, but is very 
deep, and is navigable all the year round, for it is 
said that it never freezes over. Natural stone walls, 
of a peculiar whiteness, are seen in many places, 
standing up from the river's edge in a perpendicular 
form, which have smooth faces, and are crowned 
with a bold, natural cornice, at the top, that is 
often rendered most beautiful by a fringe of ever- 
green growing upon it. In other places the walls 
look as though they were yet unfinished, and the 
mason had merely stopped to go to dinner. Yet, 
strange to say, notwithstanding the enchanting 
beauty and great natural utility of this river, it is a 

* Luke xii: 1. f Luke xii 



PITTSBURG LANDING. 323 

fact, that from Paducah, at its mouth, to Muscle 
Shoals, there is not a town upon it which is of any 
consequence whatever. Of all the little, dirty land- 
ing places that are upon it there is scarcely one that 
deserves the name of a town. This shows the 
'blighting influence of the accursed institution of 
slavery. . If that river had run through one of the 
free States of the North, its hanks would have been 
lined with lively and enterprising towns and cities, 
and its waters would have been alive with the travel 
of commerce. 

While we were quartered at Hamburg I visited 
the famous battle-ground of Pittsburg Landing, six 
miles below. As you step from the boat to the 
bank you see a small table land which runs back a 
few rods from the river, and beyond that is a hill 
running parallel to the river. To avoid this hill the 
road which starts back from the Landing turns a 
short distance to the left, and runs up a ravine 
which comes down through the hill to the river. 

This ravine is the place through which the rebels 
attempted to pass down in order to get around to 
the river, and flank our army; but as their move- 
ments were anticipated by our men, they were met 
in the gap by the Union artillery, and suffered the 
most dreadful slaughter. They were thus caught in 
their own deadly trap, and were mowed down by 
hundreds. A rebel prisoner with whom I conversed, 
and who said that he was in the engagement in the 
ravine, acknowledged that out of an artillery com- 
pany to which he belonged, which numbered one 
hundred and fifty members, only six were left alive. 



324 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

In fact, it seemed marvelous to me that any man 
who stood anywhere upon that field in the time of 
action, could ever have got off alive; the under- 
hrush all through the field was literally mowed 
down, and the forest torn in pieces by balls and 
shells. It seemed to me that there was not a square 
foot of ground upon the whole field where balls had 
not passed over ! 

The Shiloh meeting house, which was built of 
hewed logs, had been torn down and mostly carried 
away by visitors, as relics of the battle. Even the 
flooring had been split up in pieces for making 
walking canes; and I suppose that pieces of that 
house have been distributed into nearly every part 
of the civilized world. The number of spectators 
who have visited the place has doubtless been 
immense. 

The sights that met our eyes about the various 
places where the thousands had been buried, were 
too hideous to describe; but the field, taken alto- 
gether, was certainly an awful monument of the 
horrors of sin and war. 

When we landed at Hamburg, the left wing of 
the Union army was quartered there; it was its 
base of operations, and the place where the hos- 
pital was kept. We had not been there long when 
I took the typhoid fever, and had to be taken to 
the hospital — the very place which, above all others, 
I dreaded. Colonel Rankins, who was then in com- 
mand of our regiment, showed much kindness in 
looking after my welfare, and was particular in 
charging the surgeon to take the best of care of me, 



APPOINTED POST CHAPLAIN. 327 

for which I still believe I have reason to be grate- 
ful; but in spite of all that was done I took the 
chronic diarrhea, which grew upon me for some 
time, until I despaired of life. I suffered so much 
for several weeks that life became a burden. I ex- 
pected to die, and tried to set my house in order, 
that I might be fully ready for , an exchange of 
worlds ; but as I thought of my dear wife and chil- 
dren whom I must leave behind, and the wants of 
the feeble churches and the perishing sinners back 
in Iowa, it seemed to me that there was so much for 
me yet to do and to live for, that the Lord would 
certainly spare me a while longer. One day, while 
I was lying in the hospital, and feeling that I was 
very near to the grave, there came up to my mind 
thoughts of the many and speedy answers to prayer 
which I had experienced in my past history, and I 
was suddenly possessed with the idea that a prayer 
of faith would save my life. "With this my desire to 
live was quickened, and I fell to praying for my 
recovery. Never did I urge a plea before the Lord 
in greater faith. It pleased him that from that time 
I should begin to mend. 

It had been written to my family that I was 
already dead, and they mourned for me as none but 
a wife and children could ; but when they learned 
to the contrary, that I was alive and getting well, it 
was to them as news from one who had returned 
from the other world. 

"When I began to stir about again, I was ap- 
pointed by the post surgeon temporarily as post 
chaplain in the hospital, with the understanding 



328 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

that I should look after the spiritual wants of the 
sick only so far as seemed proper for my health, for 
I was yet quite feeble. This hospital was, I suppose, 
one of the greatest infirmaries the world ever saw. 
It contained some six or eight thousand sick and 
wounded men, in the various stages of disease and 
suffering, and to a novice it was perfectly shocking 
to see the number of dead bodies that would be 
carried from it in one day. I was kept very busy 
in praying with and giving spiritual counsel to the 
sick; there seemed to be so much of this kind of 
labor for me to do that I was often induced to go 
beyond my strength. 

While in this work it was my sad privilege to 
witness a great many deaths, and it is a fact worthy 
of the notice of all impenitent persons, that among 
them all I never saw one, howsoever wicked he may 
have been, who showed any signs of contempt for 
religion when he expected to die ; on the contrary, 
all seemed to believe in sound orthodoxy, and such 
as were not Christians looked upon the fact as the 
cause of their most bitter regret. Never have I 
seen one, in a single instance, who, upon his dying 
couch, found any consolation in the doctrines of 
Universalism or infidelity. They were, then, gene- 
rally ready to take the Christian's robe, and willing 
to give all they possessed for the Christian's hope ; 
but, alas ! with many it was too late. I have reason 
to believe, however, that my efforts for the good of 
souls in^the hospital were not in vain. 

There were those who, by their disease or wounds, 
were sobered and brought to view more seriously 



DREADFUL CRIES OP THE WOUNDED. 329 

their spiritual state. Such, sometimes received the 
offers of the gospel and recovered, and, I trust, will 
ever look back upon their experience in the hospital 
as one of the best portions of their lives. 
, I remember one young man, a very intelligent 
person, who was brought into the hospital one night, 
and as the surgeon examined him he said that he 
could not live until morning. He was very penitent 
in view of his past life, and told me his history in 
such a pathetic manner that it moved my feelings 
very much. I spent a considerable time with him 
in reading such Scriptures as I thought most suit- 
able to his case, and praying for his salvation. He 
knew that his time was precious, and cared for little 
else than religion. He appeared to see the way of 
life, and joined most heartily in my prayers for his 
soul. After a while, to my great encouragement, 
he professed to have great joy in believing, and 
thanked me most heartily for the interest I had 
taken in his welfare. Soon after this he passed into 
the spirit-land. 

One night there was a large, strong man brought 
in, who had been wounded. He had been told that 
he could live but a short time, and he was terribly 
frightened over his prospects for the other world. 
He would cry aloud to God for mercy for a few mo- 
ments, then stopping his pleadings in fits of despair, 
he would utter his cries and lamentations, and tell 
his feelings of remorse with the full strength of his 
voice; and as his voice was very strong, he was 
heard by hundreds of patients who were about him. 
It is remarkable that those patients who were fear- 



330 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

ing death themselves had no' complaints to make 
about his noise — they evidently felt that he had good 
reason to be terrified; but those who were conva- 
lescent, and felt that they were out of present dan- 
ger, raised a hubbub of complaints. Some wanted 
him out of the place, some would call upon the at- 
tendants to go and stop his mouth. Some told him 
he was crazy and others cursed him most insultingly 
for being, as they said, such a great fool. But he 
gave no attention to any thing they said, and con- 
tinued his cries for mercy or his wailings of despair. 
He seemed to have been a very wicked man. I 
prayed for him, and tried to instruct him and point 
him to Christ, the only way of hope ; but he de- 
clared that it was all of no avail, for he was damned 
and was going to hell, and that nothing could save 
him; and he continued his loud and pitiful cries 
until his voice was hushed in death ! 

One peculiar case occurred, of a captain who 
from some disappointment became desperate and 
stabbed himself in a dreadful manner. He was 
conveyed to his tent in an ambulance, but as they 
attempted to take him in, he declared that he would 
never go in, or move another step, until Pickard 
would be brought to him to pray for him. One of 
his attendants came after me for that purpose, and 
I sent him word that I was too feeble to go at the 
time, but would call upon him after a while ; but it 
was not long before the messenger returned, and told 
me that they could do nothing with the captain, 
unless by force, which they dare not attempt lest it 
would hasten his death. He said that he was yet 



PRAYING FOR A WOUNDED CAPTAIN. 331 

outside the tent, still declaring that he would not 
enter it until Pickard was brought, and he urged 
me to go with him to the captain, if it was possible 
for me to get there. When I found him, he was in 
a very penitent condition of mind, and personally 
besought me to pray for him, with all my heart. 
After I had given him suitable instruction and 
prayed with him, he seemed to be satisfied for the 
present, and allowed himself to be taken quietly 
into the tent. Soon after this he began to recover, 
and finally he got well; but strange as it may seem, 
he never asked for any more prayer, and I suppose 
that up to the present time, if he is yet alive, be is 
trying to live without it ! So far as could be tested, 
I found this to be most commonly the case with 
those who deferred repentance until the moment 
when the prospect of a speedy death was before 
them. Their repentance was not that of a real godly 
sorrow for their sins, but arose wholly from the fear 
of the consequences of sin, and they were simply 
terrified about death and hell. It is easy to see that 
where such thoughts only form the basis of repent- 
ance, it amounts to nothing ; for, when they after- 
ward recover from danger, this whole basis is gone ; 
all those fears leave them for the present, and then 
their repentance is gone also. Such is the kind of 
repentance to which Paul alludes, as one that needs 
to be repented of. * 

Let the careless sinner beware that he defers it not 
until the hour when life is in peril ! 

* 2 Cor. viii : 10. 



332 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

' ' Of human ills the last extreme beware ; 
Beware, Lorenzo ! a sudden death : 
How dreadful that deliberate surprise ! 
Be wise to-day ; 'tis madness to defer : 
Next day the fatal precedent will plead ; 
Thus on, till wisdom is pushed out of life. 
Procrastination is the thief of time ; 
Year after year it steals, till all are fled, 
And to tke mercies of a moment leaves, 
The vast concerns of an eternal scene. 
If not so frequent, would not this be strange? 
That 'tis so frequent, this is stranger still. 
Of man's miraculous mistakes this bears 
The palm. 'That all men are about to live, 1 
Forever on the brink of being born." * 

Some of the most affecting things I saw while at 
Hamburg, were in connection with the numerous 
visits of friends, who came for the bodies of their 
deceased relatives. In some instances, delicate wo- 
men would come to attempt the task of conveying 
home the dead bodies of those they loved. 

One day two women, the wife and mother of a 
soldier, called at my quarters for sympathy and help. 
The wife, who was burdened with a little child in 
her arms, said that they had heard that her husband 
was in the hospital somewhere in that part .of the 
army, and that he was very sick, and they wished 
me to assist them in finding him. We very 
quickly ascertained, however, that he had been 
taken to another place, some miles distant, and the 
women left to extend their search. One or two days 
afterward they returned in a teamster's wagon, 

* Young's Night Thoughts. 



MOURNFUL INCIDENT. 333 

bringing a dead body with them. They . looked as 
though they had been weeping bitterly, and when 
they recognized me they said, that before they found 
the husband he was dead and buried, and that they 
had taken up his body at a place about sixteen miles 
distant, with the view of getting it home. As I 
looked, I saw the body lying in the bottom of the 
wagon-box, at their feet, with only such a slight 
extra covering upon it, as they had been able to ex- 
temporize from their traveling apparel. In that 
condition the poor wife, with a child in her arms, 
and the mother, had ridden with the corpse that 
day the distance of sixteen miles, in the coarse lum- 
ber wagon, much of the time on a corduroy road, and 
all the way through a broiling sun ; and to increase 
their trials, the body had become putrid and was 
every hour getting more offensive. They asked me 
to aid them in preparing the body so that they might 
take it with them to Kentucky. I had aided in such 
cases before, and knew how to dread such a duty, 
but their condition was so pitiful and helpless, that 
I could not refuse them. The only thing we could 
do to preserve the body at that time was to put it 
in alcohol. 

After considerable trouble and heavy expense 
part of a barrel was procured, when we unheaded 
it, crammed the body into it, then headed the barrel 
again as tightly as possible, and the poor women, 
who were very thankful for my assistance, were 
soon embarked with their freight and journeying 
homeward. 

Oh, how strong is the affection of a faithful wife 
or mother! How little do they merit abuse, and 



334 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

how much do they deserve our kindness, when they 
are thus ready to risk life and limb, and health and 
comfort, for our sakes ! 

Here was an attachment that was more than 
friendship — it was love. How sad is the thought 
of the thousands upon thousands whose hearts have 
been broken, whose hopes have been blighted, and 
whose spirits have been crushed in the slaveholders' 
awful rebellion, to satisfy the vindictive demon of 
war ! May God hasten the time when wars shall be 
no more; when perpetual peace shall abound, and 
when " the kingdoms of this world shall become the 
kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ."* 

In the fall, after I joined the army, I was still so 
feeble in health that I felt compelled to resign. It 
was very trying for me to resign my post, and 
leave my friends and comrades behind, especially as 
so many opportunities were afforded for usefulness 
among them ; but I was so reduced, and of so little 
use to the government, and had such a poor chance 
to recover my health, that it seemed unreasonable 
for me to remain. 

On my return from the army my family received 
me with great joy, and for a time we enjoyed such 
gratitude and happiness over my safe return as, 
perhaps, none have ever realized who have not been 
off to the war. Here the joys and comforts of home 
were so reviving to my spirits that my health 
rapidly improved, and in a few weeks I was again 
ready for active service in the cause of the divine 
Master. 

* Rev. xi : 15. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

REAPPOINTED A MISSIONARY — A REVIVAL IN V * * * — 
GIVING UP THE MEETING HOUSE TO TWO MINISTERS — 
THE RESULT REFLECTIONS MEETING NEAR DEA- 
CON C * * * 'S — A DREADFUL FRIGHT — WANT OF 
MEETING HOUSES IN THE WEST — REVIVAL AT D * * * 

MEETING AT S * * * HAPPY RESULTS REVIVAL 

ATY *** A * * * — TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS— LABOR 

FOR BURLINGTON COLLEGE LIBERALITY OF THE 

CHURCHES THE CHURCH AT A * * * THE" THIRTY- 
FIVE CENT COLLECTION — WHAT A CHURCH MAY COME 
TO — REFLECTIONS — HOSPITALITY OF A LITTLE PED- 
LER. 

Late in the fall of 1862 I received a new appoint- 
ment from the Home Mission Board of ~New York, 
and again commenced laboring upon my old field, 
and spent the time until the close of the following 
winter, as usual, in revivals. 

On going to the town of V * * *, for the purpose 
of holding a meeting, where there was no Baptist 
interest, I endeavored to find .some place in wmich 
to preach, but there was no school house or building 
of any kind which could be had that was really 
suitable. There was, however, an old shaky meet- 
ing house in the place, which had been built in an 
early day by the Methodists, but for some time it 
15 



338 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

had been entirely deserted. There was no religious 
interest that I could discover of any kind in the 
town, or in the surrounding community, nearer 
than the distance of two miles and a half, where 
there was a Baptist church. 

There appeared to be a general disregard among 
the citizens in respect to religion, and I thought that 
rather than leave them without making some effort 
for their salvation, I would try to fix up the old 
meeting house in some shape to make it answer the 
purpose and preach in that. With this intention I 
inquired about the place, to ascertain where I should 
apply in order to get the privilege of using it. 
There were a very few individuals in the town who 
had formerly been connected with the church, but 
it had become so disorganized and forgotten that no 
one claimed to have any authority in regard to the 
meeting house whatever ; yet every one said that if 
I wished to use it I might do so, of course, for it 
was standing idle and useless, and there would be 
no objection, for there was no one who cared about 
it in any way. 

I then went forward with my plan, and getting 
the aid of some of the Baptist brethren who lived 
back in the country, we cleaned out and patched up 
the old barracks, arranged for heating it, and man- 
aged to make it answer the purpose tolerably well. 
In the mean while notices were circulated that a 
meeting would begin in the old house. The meet- 
ing finally began, and I soon had a good crowd ; 
but there appeared to be an unusual hardness and 
indifference, and the truth was so slow in taking 



GIVING UP THE MEETING HOUSE. 339 

effect, that I preached every night for over a week 
with my utmost energy before I made any test of 
the feelings of the congregation. "When I did make 
the test, however, a number arose for prayers, and 
designated themselves as seekers of religion. From 
this the reformation went on with great encourage- 
ment, and at the end of the second week fifteen 
persons had been hopefully converted. Besides 
this, the religious interest had spread from heart to 
heart, and there were many under deep conviction. 
The old house was thoroughly crammed each night ; 
the people were giving the most solemn attention, 
and every omen was favorable to an extensive refor- 
mation throughout the community. But just at 
this point a most unfortunate move was made by a 
presiding elder and a circuit rider, who, having 
heard of the religious interest that was in progress, 
came to the place together and said that they had 
decided to hold a meeting there immediately, and 
would be compelled to use the house. They de- 
manded, therefore, that I should give place to them. 
The movement gave me great disappointment, but 
it was a Methodist house — they had built it. I had 
no claim upon it except one of squatter sovereignty, 
and without any complaints I gave up the house to 
them, gathered up my converts, baptized them, and 
took them into the Baptist church, which was two 
miles and a half out of town. 

As it was, however, our meeting was productive 
of great good. It greatly strengthened and encour- 
aged the Baptist church in the country, and gave 
an impetus to the cause of religion and the Baptist 



340 AUTOBIOGKAPHY OF A PIONEEK. 

interest, which is felt there to this day. But the 
outcome of the effort which was made by the 
Methodist elder and his colleague was somewhat 
singular. They commenced immediately with my 
congregation, while it was yet in a high state of 
religious interest, and though they preached, prayed, 
exhorted, stamped, and hallooed with all their 
might for two weeks, in endeavoring to appropriate 
that interest to the up-building of the Methodist 
church, they failed to get a single convert ! The 
people knew how long the meeting house had been 
standing idle, and they felt that when the ministers 
came and took the meeting out of my hands, they 
were moved to do it by sectarian feeling, and it 
unfortunately excited their disgust. So unhappy 
was their fortune, that when they were about to 
leave the place it was with difficulty that the more 
orderly class of people prevented the boys from 
egging them. 

Let it not be supposed that because I have related 
this unfortunate circumstance I do it to make a 
thrust at the Methodists, for I wish to turn it to 
better account. I wish to use this as a caution 
against bigotry. We are all liable to mistakes, and 
it is possible for us to have more concern for the up 
building of our own particular church and creed, 
than for the salvation of souls ; and when Christians, 
in their efforts to do good, run into this mistake, 
they will surely fail in both those objects. 

During the winter two brethren came after me to 
hold a meeting in the town of B * * * , in Jefferson 
county, and I went with them; but when we arrived 



A DREADFUL FRIGHT. 341 

we could not hold the meeting on account of the 
small-pox, which was then in the place, and we 
went out into the country in the neighborhood of 
Deacon C * * * 's, and commenced a meeting in a 
school house. As the school room, however, was 
so very much smaller than the crowd that would 
come out to the meeting, I thought it necessary, 
after preaching three or four nights, to close the 
effort. 

During the meeting a young man came to my 
lodging under great excitement. His countenance 
and actions betokened so much alarm as to surprise 
me. I wondered what on earth could be the matter, 
but he was not long in telling. Said he — 

" Mr. Pickard, I have been awfully scared, and I 
have come to you about it, for I don't know what 
to do." 

Said I, " Why, my dear sir, what is the matter ?" 

" Why, sir, as I was going to meeting I met the 
devil on the road, right before me ; and oh ! but he 
was a most terrible sight ! and he acted as though 
he was going to catch me. I tried to get away, and 
when I would run to one side of the road he would 
run to the same side, too, and stand right ahead of 
me. I was so scared that I didn't know what in 
the world to do. I just thought I was gone, sure. 
Why, sir, I couldn't tell you how dreadful he did 
look. He was as big as an elephant !" 

" Why, how did you escape ?" I asked. 

"Why," said he, "I thought he was going to 
destroy me on the spot, and I prayed, but that 
didn't do any good; and then I ran, first to one 



342 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

side of the road and then to the other, and then I 
prayed again, but it didn't do any good yet ; and 
finally I ran and hid behind a sapling, and after I had 
staid there a while he went off out of sight. But, 
sir, I am a great sinner, and I don't know what to 
do. I want you to pray for me with all your might, 
for I've been very wicked, and I am afraid he will 
destroy me yet !" 

I kneeled down and prayed with him, and he 
seemed afterward to feel' more at ease, but he soon 
went away, and I left the place. What was the 
final result of the matter I am unable to say. 

There were very encouraging prospects for a 
reformation in the neighborhood, and I much re- 
gretted to leave, but it was midwinter, the ground 
was covered with snow, and there seemed no earthly 
chance to provide anything temporary in the way 
of a meeting house in which the people's health 
would be safe, and I felt compelled to give up the 
effort. 

I will just say here, that the want of suitable 
houses in which to hold meetings has ever been, 
through the principal part of each year, an em- 
barrassment to my labors ; and the same is true of 
the labors of many of our brethren throughout the 
West. There are many churches, especially through 
the State of Iowa, which are making little or no 
advancement for the want of meeting houses. It is 
true that in many such cases it cannot be helped, 
but I believe that in a large proportion of them it 
can be, if the brethren in such places would only 
rally with more spirit and enterprise, and bring 



MEETING AT D * * * . 343 

together their tithes and offerings. Every farmer, 
whether he be a saint or a sinner, ought to be im- 
pressed with the fact that a meeting house in his 
neighborhood will enhance the value of his property. 
Every one who can be persuaded of this, whether 
he be a good or a bad man, will feel an interest in 
such an enterprise and help to build. There are 
many strings to pull and many arguments to en- 
courage such efforts, which may be drawn from 
interests both temporal and eternal ; and a church 
of comparatively little strength can build a house of 
God, if they only have the spirit of pious enterprise. 
Where a church contains half a dozen brethren who 
are able to own tolerable farms, and clear of debt, 
that church can build, with the aid of the com- 
munity, a good house of worship, and be no poorer 
in the end, and I heartily wish that all such would 
arise and be doing. 

During the winter I held a meeting in the town 
of D * * * , where there was a feeble Baptist church 
with no pastor, though it had a small meeting house. 
The town in which the meeting house stood, as also 
the surrounding country, was settled by an excellent 
class of citizens, and they possessed more than an 
ordinary degree of intelligence. It was a most 
inviting field, and I remained and preached there 
four weeks, during which time about one hundred 
souls were converted, most of whom united with 
the Baptist church. There was a certain class who 
were very active in getting up lectures and parties, 
as is very commonly the case when a revival begins, 
but the Lord's cause triumphed over all opposition. 



344 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

The church was made strong, secured a good pastor, 
and has continued to prosper to the present time. 
I have since been permitted to visit it on different 
occasions, and rejoice with many warm friends. 

The fall preceding this I went into the neighbor- 
hood of S * * % to hold a meeting. There was but 
one Baptist in the community, and she was a widow. 
She had moved in from the East, and was very 
anxious to have me make some attempt for the 
reformation of those around her. 

I had a notice circulated that I would preach the 
next night in their school house, which was a good 
and large one, and the people came out well, and 
gave very good attention. At the close of the ser- 
vice I told the audience that I was willing to remain 
and preach to them a few nights, but that, as I was 
an entire stranger to them, I did not know that it 
would be very much desired, and that if I should 
remain, I should like to do so by their encourage- 
ment. I then took a rising vote to ascertain their 
wish in the matter, and was gratified in seeing 
nearly all who were in the roam at the time arise to 
their feet. I then went on with the meeting, which 
continued* ten days, and, according to the best of 
my recollection, every unconverted one who voted 
for the meeting was converted before it closed. The 
congregation was greatly increased after the first 
night, and there were scores who did not embrace 
religion, but of those who did, a good church was 
organized, which is flourishing and sustaining regu- 
lar preaching to this day. 

Somewhere near this period I paid a visit, by in 



TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS. 345 

vitation, to Illinois, and held a meeting in the town 
f Y* * * A * * *. A feeble little band of brethren 
had struggled nobly to build a house of worship in 
the place, and after getting it up, and making hard 
trials to clear it from debt and complete it, they 
were at last about to have it sold from them to can- 
cel a mortgage which was resting upon it. The 
brethren were about despairing, but concluded to 
make one more effort for the salvation of sinners 
before the meeting house went out of their hands. 

As soon as we began the work, it seemed that 
nothing was left undone which could be done by 
the devil, to prevent the salvation of souls. In the 
first place, he sent off and got a Universalist preacher 
to hold forth, in order to keep the people from our 
meetings, but in this the man could not succeed — 
the people would come to the Baptist meeting. A 
dancing master was then sent for, to get up a danc- 
ing school to draw away the young people; but 
prayer was made unto the Lord, and the work of 
grace went on, while the dancing-master got sick, 
and every other scheme of opposition failed. Though 
the meeting was not of long continuance, some fifty 
or sixty persons united with the church, the debt 
was finally rolled off from the meeting house, the 
church took a new start, and, I believe, has enjoyed 
a fair degree of prosperity ever since. To God be 
all the glory. 

In the spring of 1864 my appointment as mission- 
ary was renewed, but soon after my attention was 
called to the wants of our Baptist college at Bur- 
lington. That institution was originated and built 
15* 



346 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

chiefly under the zealous labors of Elder G. J. 
Johnson, and a very few generous friends and breth- 
ren who co-operated with him. They justly felt 
that the wants of the denomination in the "West for 
such an institution of learning, in particular with 
reference to fitting young men for the ministry, were 
great. 

Actuated by motives the most generous and 
noble, they had begun the enterprise and forced it 
through, so far as they had gone, in the face of 
many difficulties, and had succeeded, by the blessing 
of God, in doing a vast amount of good. Many of 
the sons and daughters of our families had there 
received mental elevation — it had helped to enlarge 
the educational interests of our people — and above 
all, it had sought out young men of ministerial 
gifts, aided them in preparing for the ministry, and 
sent them forth until its representatives were preach- 
ing in Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, California, 
and Oregon. In addition to these things, the enter- 
prise had accumulated a property in grounds and 
buildings, and various apparatus, from its different 
donations, to the value of $25,000. Under the 
paralyzing effects of the war, however, the institu- 
tion had become burdened with a debt of $6,000, 
and under the circumstances it was so discouraging 
as to threaten the life of the school. The brethren 
thought that my extensive acquaintance with the 
churches would insure me success, as an agent, in 
soliciting contributions to aid in canceling the debt, 
and fully persuaded me that it was my solemn duty 
to give my assistance. Though a work like this is 



LIBERALITY OF THE CHURCHES. 347 

not such as any one can have an appetite for, I sup- 
pose, I felt that it was one which was important to 
the cause of our churches, and started forth, and 
after a somewhat lengthy effort, which was assisted 
by two or three other brethren, we closed with suc- 
cess. In this tour I, visited and preached to many 
churches, renewed many old acquaintances, both in 
Illinois and Iowa, and, I trust, enlarged my circle 
of friends. I was especially thankful in finding that 
in most of the places where I visited the spirit of 
Christian benevolence had been greatly enlarged 
among our people, and that in about the same pro- 
portion God had blessed them in temporal pros- 
perity. With but very rare exceptions, indeed, I 
saw no turning of the cold shoulder because I was 
an agent to collect money for the Master's cause, 
but on the contrary, both myself and the claims 1 
presented were generally received in the true spirit 
of Christian generosity. 

Among those churches which responded to my 
appeals to aid the college, I am happy to make most 
favorable notice of Independence, Bonaparte, Des 
Moines, Winterset, Oskaloosa, Denmark, Fort Madi- 
son, Jefferson, Oquaka, Fall Creek, Sugar Grove, 
Edgington, Monmouth, and Young America. Of 
all the churches, however, that have aided in this 
college enterprise, the First Baptist Church of Bur- 
lington has borne the heaviest burdens. It has been 
a strong tower upon the walls of Zion, and its lead- 
ing brethren have been characteristic cross-bearing 
and self-denying men. 

In one place which I visited, however, of which I 



348 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

may make profitable notice, the brethren have never 
burst their shell; and I wish the Lord's sledge- 
hammer would fall upon it and break it in pieces, 
and let them out into the sun, so they can look 
upon the light of gospel day. The case in ques- 
tion was that of a church in the village of A * * *. 
It contained about one hundred members, many of 
whom were among the most able farmers in that 
part of the country. Their temporal ability is such, 
that if they could be brought into sympathy with 
the self-denying labors of their brethren who are 
straining and giving to advance the interests of 
religion in the West, they might do a great amount 
of good. 

Knowing of their ability, and hearing that they 
were seldom called upon to give anything to the 
cause of religion, I made a journey of thirty-two 
miles, going nearly half the way on foot, in order to 
visit them in behalf of the college. The first place 
at which I stopped among them was at the house 
of a brother who preached occasionally, who owned 
a large farm, and was worth at least $10,000. I told 
him all about the institution, and all about the good 
it had done by educating ministers and sending 
them forth to bless the world, and how much help 
it had been, and still would be, to the cause of re- 
ligion, if we could keep it moving, and then appealed 
to him for aid. 

After he had quietly heard me through, said he, 
" My observation and experience proves that for 
preachers to have too much learning ain't good;" 
and after trying some time to show to me, by argu- 



THE CHURCH AT A * * *. 349 

ments the most contemptible, that what he had said 
was true, he refused to bestow a single dollar. I 
plead hard for the small sum of one dollar, that he 
might have a little interest in the matter, but it was 
-no use, he stubbornly refused. I then made a num- 
ber of calls upon the brethren, but found them all 
like the first, and could not get a single cent. Feel- 
ing disappointed that I had lost all my time and 
travel in getting there and going about among them, 
I resolved to push ahead, and get away as fast as 
possible to more generous climes ; but the brother 
with whom I had dined, and who was also a 
preacher, urged very hard for me to remain over the 
Sabbath and preach. I told him that as I could not 
get anything from them, I could not afford to give 
them my time in that way, for it was too precious — 
the college was suffering, and I must go at once and 
visit such churches as would aid it ; but after urging 
me some time in vain, he finally said that they 
would give me a good collection on the Sabbath if I 
would remain and preach, and with considerable 
encouragement in that direction I consented. He 
also promised that after dinner he would go around 
with me among the brethren, and try to stir them 
up on the subject a little. 

While we were waiting for dinner I thought I 
would read the news. Said I, "Have you the 
Christian Times ?" 

"What, me!" said he, in apparent surprise. 
" JSTo, thank God ; I never had it in my house. They 
say it's an abolitionist paper." 

" Have you any religious paper ?" I asked. 



350 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

" "No" said he, " nor I don't want any of them 
They say it's them papers that's brought on this 
war." 

I found that there were four such preachers in the 
church, all of whom I visited. One we found in the 
field threshing, with whom I made an earnest effort 
to get something, but it was of no use whatever. 
While I was with him, however, a peddler came 
along, of whom he bought something, causing him 
to display the contents of his pocket-book, which 
could not have had less than $500 in it at the time. 

The last preacher whom we visited did not believe 
in colleges, or educated ministers either, and would 
give nothing ; and though he was well off in point 
of property, all the library which I could see in his 
house was a Bible and an old greasy hymn book. 
Aside from these, according to the best of my dis- 
coveries, the place was as destitute of any books or 
other sources of information as any Indian hut. As 
I had arrived there on Friday, and had agreed to 
preach three times, the people had become pretty 
well stirred up, so that when Sabbath came we had 
a good turn-out at the meeting. 

"When I was in the midst of my sermon the 
people's hearts seemed to be moved very much; 
one brother, especially, became so extremely happy 
that he lifted up his voice while I was preaching. I 
began to think that matters looked very encourag- 
ing for a good collection, and closed the sermon 
while all were in a high state of feeling. Thinking 
that that would be the best time for me to get them 
to do their duty to the college, in as prudent a man- 



THE THIRTY-FIVE CENT COLLECTION. 351 

ner as I could I changed the subject to an appeal for 
them to give. The hat was then passed round and 
returned to the desk, and on counting the contents, 
lo ! it was but thirty-jive cents ! With a look of 
amazement I then held the precious little bunch up 
before the congregation, between my thumb and 
fore-finger, and made quite a speech about it, re- 
minding them of their promise to give a good col- 
lection, and of the time I had spent among them, 
and of the preaching I had done for them, and 
would frequently shake the little bunch before them 
and tell them to look at the result ! Finally, I told 
them that I did not wish to keep the money, for if I 
did keep it, it would go into the published report 
of our collections as the contribution of their church, 
and hence it would be laid before the world that 
they had given only thirty-jive cents, and it would be 
a disgrace which I did not want to see published 
against them. I then begged of them that, for the 
honor of the cause, they would come and take their 
•money back ; but no one would come to take the 
money, and the whole amount was left in my hands. 
At night I preached again, but the taking of the 
collection had so destroyed their religious feelings 
that all was very cold and dull. At the close of the 
last sermon I begged to know if some one of the 
brethren or friends would not help me forward, in 
the morning, by taking me a few hours' drive on my 
journey to another point; but not one would offer, 
and so little was their sympathy for my mission, 
that when the meeting was dismissed not one of 
them even invited me to a lodging, but all dispersed 



352 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

and left me standing alone with the thirty-five cents. 

!Nbw, reader, you may see what a church will 
come to where its memhers do not believe in taking 
religious newspapers, building colleges, giving to 
religious enterprises, helping to educate ministers, 
nor sustaining salaried pastors; but, above all things, 
do believe in hating a contribution box. The thirty- 
five cents was, as near as I could find, the first 
public collection which had been taken in that 
congregation for many a day — the people dis- 
couraged it. 

Their house of worship looked as if it had been 
built for a barn, and afterward changed into a 
meeting house. I believe that there was not a 
particle of paint on any of the inside work ; every 
thing about it looked dreary and uninviting. 

I will just here state what I believe — what I posi- 
tively know. I will not make the statement upon 
theory, but facts — upon the result of long and varied 
experience, and extensive observation. Let a church 
banish the contribution box, and discourage public collec- 
tions, and it will surely decline in spirituality, and in a few 
years die of dry rot, and, become a stench in the nostrils 
of the Almighty ! 

It is easy to see that such a result is natural. 
When we suppose we are excused from bringing 
our offerings to the Lord, and presenting them upon 
his altar, it accommodates self, which will then get 
the upper hand, and when it fills our hearts, the 
spirit of pious enterprise is gone, because there is 
no room for it. This will encourage all those ruin- 
ous ideas of which I have spoken, such as opposition 



HOSPITALITY OP A PEDDLER. 353 

to religious newspapers, opposition to building 
colleges and educating ministers, opposition to 
sustaining salaried pastors, and in fact opposition to 
every religious enterprise, at home or abroad, where 
it will cost any sacrifice to carry it through. I 
heartily wish we might all learn to follow more 
closely the apostolic injunction, "Upon the first day 
of the week, let every one of you lay by him in 
store as God hath prospered him." * " Take heed," 
O ye churches, " and beware of covetousness ; for a 
man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the 
things which he possesseth." 

While I was yet standing near the church, deliber- 
ating as to what I should do, a little man, who was 
a peddler, and who it appears had heard of my 
situation, came along with a pistol in his belt, and 
appeared to be in high dudgeon. I heard him, as 
he was coming, inquire of somebody in a very blus- 
tering style, "Where's that preacher that nobody 
wants to keep over night ?" Directly he came up 
and invited me home with him, where he treated 
me the best he knew how, and the next morning 
took me aboard of his peddler wagon, and hauled 
me about sixteen miles. 

* 1 Cor. xvi : 2. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

A RIDE WITH A PEDDLER — CONVERSATION WITH A REBEL 
AND HIS ARREST — SUCCESS OF THE COLLEGE ENTER- 
PRISE — LABORS AGAIN AS A MISSIONARY — REPORT 
OF ONE HUNDRED AND TWO DAYS' LABOR — ATTACKED 

BY TWO UNIVERSALIST MINISTERS — THE RESULT 

SOME POETRY FOR UNIVERSALISTS — THE GREAT HAR- 
VEST — CALL FOR LABORERS — FAREWELL ADDRESS. 

The blustering little peddler who had become my 
traveling companion, was a very small man, but 
terrible ferocious, and seemed to be in for the 
" Union," soul and body. The chief topic of his 
conversation was about the Rebels and Copper- 
heads, against whom he had an awful spite. As 
our route was not far from the State line of Mis- 
souri, we were passing through a country which had 
been much threatened by guerrillas, and which was 
being flooded with refugees from Missouri, who 
were mostly rebels at heart. The peddler was armed 
equal to a pirate, and was ready for any emergency. 
In fact, from what we could learn, the traveling 
looked rather squally, and I wondered that the little 
man would dare to risk himself and his goods alone 
in such a country ; but he declared that he was not 
afraid, and that nothing would please him better than 
to have a chance to shoot some of Uncle Sam's strag- 



CONVERSATION WITH A REBEL. 355 

gling enemies. "While on our journey we overtook 
a man who we thought looked rather suspicious, 
and about the following conversation ensued. 

Peddler. " How do you do, stranger?" 
' Stranger. " Yery well, I thank you. How do 
you do ?" 

Peddler. "All right, sir. Where are you from, 
stranger ?" 

Stranger. " I am from Ohio. I am a minister of 
the gospel, sir." 

Peddler. " Ah ! to be sure. Have you been 
preaching any around these parts ?" 

Stranger. "Well, not exactly in this neighbor- 
hood. I have been up more in the northern part 
of the State, and have just come in here. I am now 
trying to find a man by the name of D * * * , with 
whom I have some business, and I was told that he 
lived in or near the town of C * * * . Can you 
tell me, sir, whether I am on the right road to 

Q * * * ?» 

We both happened to know that the man whom 
he inquired for was suspected of being a traitor, and 
that complaints had already been laid against him 
for harboring rebels ; but the peddler said, 
" Yes, sir ; this is the road to C * * * ." 
"Where did you spend the Sabbath?" I asked. 
Stranger. " In the village of A * * * , sir." 
" Ah !" said I, "I preached there last Sabbath." 
Stranger. "Is it possible, sir ! Then you are a 
preacher, too, are you ?" 
" Yes, sir," said I. 



356 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Stranger. "Well, I am glad to see you, then. 
What kind of preacher are you ?" 

" I am a Baptist preacher, sir," said I. 

Stranger. " Well, indeed, that is just what I am." 

"Ah! indeed, sir." 

Stranger. "Yes, sir; and I am trying to find 
some church that wants a minister, and perhaps you 
can tell me where I can find such a place." 

" I expect I could, sir, for people need preaching 
in many places ; but if you are a Baptist minister 
I am surprised that you would spend the Sabbath so 
near the church where I preached yesterday, and 
not come to meeting once." 

Stranger. " I was not very well, sir." 

" Well, you seem to look pretty stout again 
to-day," said I. But the peddler was getting 
impatient. 

Peddler. "Where did you stop yesterday and 
last night — whose house was it at?" 

Stranger. " At Mr. G * * * 's." 

The peddler knew it was a falsehood, and quick 
as thought he bounced from the wagon, with his 
pistol in his hand, saying, " Surrender, sir, or you 
are a dead man !" and his pistol was held close to 
the stranger's face, all ready to fire, so that he durst 
not move a hand. His hands were then bound 
behind him securely, and we set him on the top of 
the peddler's box, and moved on. 

"!Now," said the peddler, "set there, you infernal 
rebel, you. You've lied enough for one day." 

The man begged hard for his freedom, but his 
jailor ordered him to be quiet, and we rolled ahead. 



SUCCESS OF THE COLLEGE ENTERPRISE. 357 

This was after the battle at Athens, which was on 
the Iowa line ; and as it was believed that Anderson's 
guerillas were near the border at the time, we sus- 
pected that this man was a spy who was sent ahead 
for information. At any rate, the peddler took him 
to the town of C * * * , where he was lodged in jail, 
and was afterward proved, I was informed, to be 
one of the worst of rebels. He was kept in jail a 
. considerable time, but what finally became of him 
I never knew. 

When the college was found to be clear of debt, 
a brother in Quincy, according to previous promise, 
gave five thousand dollars more toward its endow- 
ment, which, with another claim of twenty thousand 
dollars, held by the institution, will, when all is 
settled as it is hoped, leave it worth about fifty- 
five thousand dollars, clear of all embarrassments. 
My prayer is that it may be well sustained from this 
time henceforth, and do a vast amount of good. 

At the close of my labors for the institution, I 
attended the K* * * Association, which was held 
at the town of D * * * , in Iowa, and saw so many 
tokens of the growing spirit of enterprise as did my 
soul good. All the leading objects of Christian 
benevolence were presented, such as the Home 
Mission, Foreign Mission, Bible Society, Education 
Society, Church Building Fund, etc., and every 
appeal was responded to most liberally ; especially 
in view of the fact that the Association had been 
in existence but two years, and covered but a small 
territory. 



358 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

During the fall and winter I was again continually 
engaged in revival efforts, under the employment 
of the Home Mission Board. That the reader may 
form some better idea of the hard labors of a travel- 
ing missionary than any I have yet given him, I will 
here give an account of the labors of one hundred 
and two days, performed by me in the winter of 
1864, and sent in my report to the Mission Board. 

dumber of miles traveled 700 

■ " of sermons preached 118 

" of visits made 310 

" of prayer meetings conducted - - 87 

" of conversions 180 

" baptized and added to churches - 107 

I much regret that this is the only report upon 
which I can now lay my hands ; but short as it is, 
however, it will serve to show that the life of a 
missionary is a stirring one. 

I shall mention but one meeting which I held 
during the winter. It was one which, though none 
were converted, proved a happy success. 

I was sent for by a few brethren to go back into 
the State of Iowa about fifty miles, to hold a meet- 
ing in a destitute place where there was no church, 
though it was in a considerable village. "We ob- 
tained the use of the school house, however, and 
commenced the meeting. It was not long when 
some unconverted men became very angry at my 
plain way of telling them their sins, and in order to 
spite me they made up a purse of fifteen dollars, 
and dispatched a couple of men, who were known 



ATTACKED BY UNIVERSALISTS. 359 

to be drunkards, after two Universalist ministers, to 
set up an opposition meeting. 

The ministers came on. In the first place, they 
wished me to let them occupy the school house. 
They said that as I had now occupied it for several 
evenings, it would be no more than fair for me to 
step aside for a time and give them an equal chance ; 
but I could not see the point. ~Not succeeding in 
this, they went across the street into an old frame 
house within a few rods of my meeting, and com- 
menced preaching there. Notices were posted up 
about town, and the biggest gun was set up to 
preach, in order to draw the people away from my 
meeting ; but when they had done their best they 
could only succeed in getting the most wicked class 
of the community to hear them. They, however, 
hammered away against us as long as the meeting 
lasted, and succeeded in raising the spirit of contro- 
versy, and preventing the salvation of souls for the 
time ; but the result of the controversy was, that 
the better class of the people felt disgusted at their 
uncalled-for attack upon the Baptist cause, and their 
sympathies were all aroused and enlisted in our 
favor. We then seized the opportunity which was 
presented in the general sympathy, to get pledges 
and subscriptions from the citizens for building a 
house of worship, and such was the interest taken 
in our enterprise, that within three or four days a 
sufficient amount was raised to erect a good build- 
ing, and before I left the materials were on the 
ground. 



360 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

This is another illustration of what I have already 
said, that the more the Baptists are pounded, the 
better they prosper ; and we ought not to murmur 
at such experiences, for the reason that they make 
us fruitful. 

I have not space to deal with the doctrines of Uni- 
versalism at any length in this book, but will here 
present a simple piece of poetry, which I never saw 
a Universalist who was able to manage. 

u Thus Pharaoh and his mighty host, 
Had God-like honors given ; 
A pleasant breeze brought them with ease, 
And took them safe to heaven. 

" So all the filthy Sodomites, 
When God bade Lot retire, 
Went in a trice to paradise 
On rapid wings of fire. 

' l Likewise the guilty Canaanites 
To Joshua's sword were given : 
The sun stood still that he might kill, 
And packed them oft to heaven. 

' ' God saw those villains were too bad 
To own that fruitful land ; 
He therefore took the rascals up, 
To dwell at his right hand. 

" The men who lived before the flood 
Were made to feel the rod ; 
Ihey missed the ark, and, like the lark, 
Were washed right up to G-od. 

' ' But Noah, he, because, you see, 
Much grace to him was given, 
He had to toil and till the soil, 
And work his way to heaven. 



THE GREAT HAKVEST. 361 

1 ' The wicked Jews who did refuse 
The Lord's commands to do, 
"Were hurried straight to heaven's gate, 
By Titus and his crew. 

" How happy is the sinner's state 
"When he from earth is driven ; 
He knows it is his certain fate, 
To go straight up to heaven. 

u There's Judas, too, another Jew, 
"Whom some suppose accursed ; 
Yet with a cord he beat his Lord, 
And got to heaven first. ' ' 

I have not yet returned to the place of my contest 
with the Universalist ministers, but now that the 
Baptist meeting house is built, I intend to at an 
early day, God willing, when I hope to reap a 
harvest of souls. 

Though the Lord has done wonders for us as a 
people, in raising up churches throughout the "West, 
there are yet many large fields for missionary enter- 
prise. Though our people are now numbered in 
the State of Iowa by thousands, I trust that they 
are yet to be multiplied, and that the work of our 
denomination has but fairly begun. 

The great harvest is ripening fast, and rapidly 
increasing in abundance, and to all such as feel that 
they are called of God to enter the field I will here - 
say, Come over into Macedonia and help us, for 
" the harvest is plenteous and the laborers are few." 

With all the trials and crosses that are incident 
to a missionary's life, he has his joys and comforts. 
No class of men can be blessed with a larger number 

16 



362 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

of warm personal friends, and this in itself is a 
fortune. Though, so far as worldly wealth is con- 
cerned, he may expect poverty, if he is entirely 
devoted to his work, yet he will be fed and clothed, 
and may constantly look forward with joy to the 
time when evening shall come, and when the Lord 
of the vineyard shall say unto his Steward, " Call 
the laborers and give them their hire." 

To young men who are trembling and halting 
under the pressure of the Spirit, let me say, Wait 
no longer, but equip yourself for the work with- 
out delay. Hasten to a School of the Prophets, 
at Alton, Burlington, Pella, Chicago, or some other 
one within your reach, and there prepare yourselves 
with every qualification of grace and learning which 
Providence will allow, that you may become " work- 
men that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing 
the word of truth." Fear not, you are in the morn- 
ing of your days ; and with the long life that seems 
open before you, you may truly accomplish, with 
active piety, a glorious work; for the Master has 
said, " Lo, I am with you alway.' 

To older men who may be called to enter the 
work at the eleventh hour, let me say that you 
will likewise receive your penny. One brother of 
my acquaintance, who had formerly been a deacon, 
entered the ministry about five or six years ago, when 
he was upward of sixty years of age, and has been 
an active, useful pastor, approved of God and the 
brethren, ever since. If you feel that you would be 
but small stones in the temple, remember that we 



A CALL FOR LABORERS. 363 

have many small niches which you will fit, where 
large stones will not answer. 

I must here, however, offer a word of caution to 
any brethren who are already in the ministry, and 
contemplate coming to Iowa to settle. There is hut 
little in the State to invite you, if you require every- 
thing made ready to your hand ; but if you can and 
will labor, and are willing to endure hardness as 
good ministers of Jesus Christ, and strive to make a 
place for yourselves, there are opportunities rare and 
inviting. On this point I will insert part of an 
article clipped from the Christian Times. 

"to those seeking pastorates. 

" If any Baptist minister who reads this is wish- 
ing to come to Iowa, and who has got grit, patience, 
zeal and benevolence of heart which have made him 
beloved where he has lived and labored, let him 
write to our worthy General Agent of the Iowa 
Baptist State Convention, Rev. S. H. Mitchell, at 
Oskaloosa, and he will tell him of fields of labor 
where these qualities will not only be appreciated, 
but be productive of glorious fruits. For such as 
only aspire to metropolitan parishes, those of Iowa 
are too large and ttfo important, with feW excep- 
tions ! There is work here to be done, and truly 
blessed is he who knows how and will do it. Such 
will find a welcome that will warm their hearts. 

" Iowa." 



364 AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A PIONEER. 

Let such, then, as are called for in the above 
article come forward, of both old men and young 
men, that we may sow, and reap, and finally rejoice 
together, bringing our sheaves with us. 

But, reader, I must close this rude and imperfect 
sketch. I am sorry for its deficiencies, as well as 
for all others of my life ; and for all my mistakes, 
which I am confident are many, I humbly crave the 
forgiveness of both God and man. As I look over 
the wide field where God has so abundantly blessed 
the labors of myself and my brethren, I cannot but 
remember with deepest gratitude the hundreds of 
brothers, sisters, and friends, who have received me 
kindly and rewarded me generously, as a minister 
of the Lord Jesus. To such is this volume sent as 
a tribute to the memories of by-gone days, and as 
a token of my regard. Let me ask you that while 
I remain in this mortal tabernacle, which is now 
becoming weather-beaten, you will pray for me, that 
my remaining days may be useful. 

Finally, let us not lay aside our armor in the 
church militant until we enter forever that rest 
which remaineth for the people of God. There I 
trust that we shall have a happy reunion, 

"Where, upon a green and flowery mount 
Our weary souls shall sit, 
And with heavenly joy recount 
The labors of our feet." 

Farewell. 



APPENDIX 



THE BARREN" FIG-TREE. 

(reported by rev. e. h. waring.) 

Text. — " Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I 
come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and find none : cut it down ; why cumbereth 
it the ground ? Luke xiii : 7. 

My text is a part of the parable of the fig-tree. I 
am sorry there are so few persons present this even- 
ing ; but I have no doubt there are those here who 
need to be instructed in the ways of eternal life, and 
I seldom ever meet a congregation in which there 
are none who are not Christians. You perceive 
already that my text is designed for those who are 
out of Christ ; and you may think it strange that I 
would introduce such a subject upon this occasion, 
seeing there are so few here who are not professed 
Christians ; but I presume there are those present 
to whom the subject ought to be preached. This 
parable is full of meaning ; and as the Saviour often 
used the parable, or figures, or metaphors, for the 
purpose of illustrating some great truth, so in refer- 
ence to the one in which stands our text 

I am aware at the same time, that a great many 
people claim that a parable is without meaning, and 
therefore want to set it aside, simply because it is a 
parable. But when you come to look into these 
parables, you will find them big with meaning, as 
everything else the Saviour has spoken; and he 
designed by this parable to teach a very important 
lesson. 

The parable speaks of a vineyard, and it is stated 
that in this vineyard there was a tree that is repre- 



368 



APPENDIX. 



sented as barren ; and here I want to depart a little 
from the language of the parable, that those who are 
not familiar with the idea of a vineyard may under- 
stand my meaning the more clearly. You may be 
more familiar with the term " orchard" than with 
that of the vineyard; and as I do not want to enter- 
tain you now with a description of the vineyard, 
with the wine-press, etc., we will, to bring it down 
to every one's capacity, call it an orchard, which 
will illustrate the same thing. There was, as we 
read in the parable, a husbandman, who issued the 
order to cut down this tree ; and this husbandman 
represents God, the owner of the vineyard. But 
the vine-dresser plead for the life of the tree, and 
this vine-dresser represents Christ. The vineyard 
represents, as we claim, God's universe. So then 
you get the meaning of these expressions in the 
parable. 

Coming, then, to the subject of the parable, there 
are two reasons why this tree is ordered to be re- 
moved. The first reason is its barrenness ; for says 
the owner of the vineyard, "Behold, these three 
years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, and find 
none." The second reason for this order is because 
it is an encumbrance to the vineyard, and hence the 
question is asked, "Why cumbereth it the ground?" 
And I would have you understand, fellow-sinner, 
that you are, by your rebellion against God, not 
only bringing destruction upon yourself, but you 
are assisting very materially, by your influence, in 
the damnation of your fellow-Hien ; for you see 
these two charges are brought against the tree — 
it brought forth no fruit, and it encumbered the 
ground. You, therefore, not only refuse obedience 
to God yourself, but by your unholy influence you 
encumber the souls of those around you. You are 
not only refusing to enter the kingdom yourself, but 
you are actually hindering those who otherwise 



APPENDIX. 369 

would enter in. iSTow I wish to use this parable to 
illustrate the condition of those who refuse to enter 
upon God's service. There is a meaning to every 
thing in the parable, and it is important for us to 
try and understand it. 

]STow, here is the farmer, he goes to the nursery 
from which he gets his trees, and he selects the best 
piece of land he has for those trees, and he cultivates 
and improves that land, and he takes those scions 
from the nursery and carefully plants them in that 
orchard. ISTow, he knows that those trees are not 
capable of bearing fruit, or of yielding him any 
remuneration for the expense and labor he has be- 
stowed upon them, or for the ground which they 
occupy. Yet he takes all the care possible of those 
trees, defends them from injury, cultivates and 
brings them on, and by the blessing of God — the 
sun, and the air, and the rain — they grow, and at 
length become large fruit-bearing trees. We want 
by these trees, thus planted and cared for, to repre- 
sent the infant race. God does not demand of the 
infant the fruits of faith and obedience, until it has 
arrived at the years of accountability. It cannot 
labor in the kingdom of God for the promotion of 
his glory, and God does not demand of it fruit, any 
more than the husbandman requires fruit of the tree 
before it is capable of bearing fruit. And yet, after 
that tree has occupied the land until it has had 
sufficient growth and age to produce fruit, the hus- 
bandman looks for the necessary fruit from the tree. 
And he has a right to expect it, has he not ? Cer- 
tainly he has. Every man knows that this is reason- 
able. ]STow I want to know on what ground the 
husbandman would demand fruit of that tree? 
Why, it is his. It occupies his ground, and do you 
not admit that it is his prerogative, that he is its 
owner, and that he has a right to look for fruit 
from it ? 

16* 



370 APPENDIX. 

Now, so it is with the family of man. Here the 
child is cared for and protected, and grows up to 
years of knowledge — to know good from evil. And 
God gives it the necessary instruction and means of 
doing good, and I want to know if he has not the 
right to claim fruit from that child when come to 
years of accountability ? Is not this reasonable ? 
And if so, then I want to know why every man 
should not respond to the claim of God, the owner 
of this great vineyard, whose land we are occupying, 
whose air we are breathing, and whose blessings we 
are enjoying all through our lives ? Is the demand 
unreasonable? Now if the individual is here to- 
night, who is in his sins, who has reached the years 
of accountability, and feels that this is unreasonable 
and unjust that God should demand fruit of him, 
let him raise up his hand. But there is not one 
here — no hand comes up. 

Now let me change it a little. We read — the 
husbandman came three years seeking fruit from 
this fig tree. Now it was not because this tree could 
not bring forth fruit — that it was barren. There it 
was in the vineyard, surrounded by other lig trees 
that did bring forth fruit ; and if it could not have 
brought fruit the husbandman would not have made 
any such demand upon it. Now so it is with the 
sinner. It is not, because he cannot bring forth 
fruit unto God — that he does not. If so, God would 
not make any such claim upon him. Then, when 
you come to look at the justice of the claims of the 
husbandman upon the tree, and to see his care of 
it, and how it grows and flourishes year after year, 
and brings forth no fruit — nothing but leaves — no 
fruit, that it is barren and unprofitable, you can see 
why the husbandman should be provoked with it, 
and want it cut down. It has not only disappointed 
his hopes, but provoked him to cut it down. Then 
why may it not be cut down ? Ought it not to be 



APPENDIX. 371 

cut down if it cannot be made to produce fruit ? It 
certainly can bear fruit as well as any other tree in 
the orchard, and why should it not be cut down and 
the ground disencumbered, that something more 
, profitable may take its place ? 

Then I come to you, and ask you if you have 
arrived at years of accountability, and have brought 
forth no fruit, why should not God issue his orders 
to the sheriff, Death, to cut you down, seeing you 
are hardening and callousing your heart in sin, and, 
by your influence, hindering others from entering 
into the kingdom of God, and laboring for its exten- 
sion in the world ? Why, do you not see it would 
be just for God to remove every such individual 
from his vineyard, when you have had every facility 
and means to do right; and God has done every 
thing possible for him to do, to bring you into the 
kingdom of his dear Son ? And still you rebel 
against him. Can you see any reason why such an 
order should not be issued against you, to take you 
out of the way? You know you have borne no 
fruit, and that God has come, by these various means, 
year after year, seeking fruit from you; but yet 
there has been nothing but rebellion on the part of 
incorrigible sinners. STow, why should not the tree 
be removed ? Why should the vine-dresser cry, 
" Spare it yet another year ?" " Lord, let it alone 
this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it : 
and if it bear fruit, well : and if not, then after that 
thou shalt cut it down." 

ISTow here the vine-dresser speaks of the cultiva- 
tion of the tree. You know the nature of the 
parched soil of the earth. Under the influence of 
the burning sun the ground becomes naturally very 
hard, and would very much impede the growth and 
fruitfulness of the tree ; and, therefore, the hus- 
bandman says, " Let alone this year also." He 
does not say it cannot bear fruit, or that it has had 



372 APPENDIX. 

no good opportunity — that it has been afflicted — 
that it has not been permitted the privilege of 
bearing fruit, or anything of that kind ; he does 
not say that it ought not to be removed — that it 
has not been barren — that it does not cumber the 
ground ; no, nothing of that sort ; but he says it is 
a pity that such a tree, in such a situation, and that 
has had so much care, should not be spared. And 
now, he says, " I will cultivate it, and I will use 
means to strengthen and improve the soil, and I 
will see if I cannot get a crop from it; and then, if 
it brings forth fruit, all will be well; and if not, then 
thou mayest cut it down." ISTow, just so Jesus 
intercedes for sinners. We have seen that he is 
represented in this parable by the vine-dresser. See 
how the man pleads for the tree ; and so, my dear 
friend, with reference to you, it is only through the 
intercessions of Christ, the great vine-dresser, that 
you are here to-night. It is not because you have 
rendered obedience to the commands of God; but 
because Jesus pleads for you that you are here. 
You are capable, if you will embrace the means 
within your reach, of bearing fruit ; and it is a great 
pity that such a spirit as yours, made to be happy, 
should be cast down into hell — that that man with 
the towering intellect, for the simple reason that 
he refuses obedience to the government of God, that 
justice should require that he should be cut down ; 
and yet it will be, unless the person can be induced 
to yield his stubborn heart to the mandates of 
heaven. 

Thus, you see, the vine-dresser goes to work. 
Here you have a view of some of the implements 
that are used for the purpose. See the man with 
his pick, digging up the soil — the hard soil. So 
God's Word represents the heart of man as being 
hard as the flinty rock. Now it is our duty to go 
to work and dig with the pick of divine truth into 



APPENDIX. 373 

the parched soil of the sinner's heart. God has 
represented the hard ground of the sinner's heart 
by this rocky soil : " Is not my word like a fire ? 
saith the Lord ; and like a hammer that breaketh 
-the rock in pieces." 

~Now, as the vine-dresser has to use some im- 
plement to break up the hardened soil, so with 
the sinner's heart. And the prophet speaks of 
"breaking up the fallow ground." Here there is 
another implement. The hard soil needs the plow 
to turn it up, that it may be prepared for the seed. 
And we must have the plowshare of eternal truth, 
which must be driven right through the parched 
soil of that wicked heart to break it up and soften 
it, and prepare it to bring forth fruit. There is no 
other way of doing it ; for without it you may cast 
the seed upon the sinner's heart — and it is com- 
pared to the stony ground — and you may continue 
to preach the gospel to that hardened sinner year 
after year, and the fowls of hell will follow the plow 
and gather the seed out of the heart. You know 
the seed that was cast on stony ground — the fowls 
of the air gathered it up and devoured it ; and how 
can it be gathered out of the heart, unless it is in 
the same way by which it is put in? Hence we 
claim that it is the fowls of hell that gather up the 
seed that has been sown in the heart, and the per- 
son brings forth no fruit. 

So I say we have to use the plowshare of divine 
truth to break up that heart. It must be done by 
the Holy Spirit, but the gospel is the means. 
Turning back to the prophet again, he speaks of 
other implements : "Is not my word like a hammer 
that breaketh the rock in pieces?" The sledge- 
hammer of the law must be brought down to break 
the flinty heart; and when it has been broken up, 
you have to enrich it by pouring into it gospel- 



374 APPENDIX. 

truth. The mind must be stirred with gospel truth 
to illuminate, and lead it to obedience to Christ. 

But again, we notice that the Holy Spirit has 
come, and the heart has been moved again and 
again, for we read, " These three years I have come 
seeking fruit thereon." I would inquire of the sin- 
ner, " How often have you been impressed with the 
necessity of giving your heart to Christ? Perhaps, 
not once, nor twice, but many times you have been 
so influenced. He is the husbandman, the owner 
of all this great vineyard. And can you be aston- 
ished, this being true, if you should never be visited 
again — that you would never have another oppor- 
tunity — that your soul would never be impressed 
again — that you would never have another invita- 
tion to repent ? Would this astonish you, knowing 
that for so many years God has knocked at the door 
of your heart, in order to do you good and bring 
you into a saving relation with himself? Barren 
sinner, look here ! God will not chide. How long 
has he stood at the door of your heart, and knocked? 
You read, " Behold, I stand at the door and knock: 
if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will 
come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with 
me." Rev. iii : 20. The opening is your duty. 
God stands, in the person of his Son, and by his 
truth and through his Spirit he is knocking at thy 
heart, and he waits with patience for you to unbolt 
that door, with the promise that if you do, he will 
come in to renew your heart, and dwell in you, the 
hope of glory. But if you do not do it, He will issue 
the sentence to the sheriff of the skies, " Cut down 
that hardened sinner ; — why cumbereth he the 
ground?" 

Now God complains, again, that you are cumber- 
ing the ground. You are not only found to be 
barren in spirit, but you are in the way of others — 
you are cumbering the ground. 



APPENDIX. 375 

Now turn to the orchard again. There stands 
the tree ; and frequently we are asked by the skep- 
tic, " If religion is such a blessing, we want to know 
why there are so many poor professors among you ? 
Why don't you own more wealth, and have better 
houses and larger plantations?" Do you see that 
barren tree ? Perhaps it i& the most flourishing of 
any in the orchard. And why ? Because its sub- 
stance has never been exhausted by supplying a 
return to its owner. It is absorbing all its substance 
to itself, and it is encumbering the ground; and 
the more it adds to its growth, the more it cumbers 
the ground. Any one of common observation can 
see it. Does it not absorb the rays of the sun from 
the whole circle of the ground it covers? Why 
you may go and sow the best seed under that tree, 
and wherever it interposes the seed will bring you 
no return. I have noticed some such trees that 
have destroyed the productiveness of the ground for 
a quarter of an acre. Nothing would grow there. 
'Now, if the tree is unfruitful, why should the farmer 
spare it? If it was removed how much larger crop 
he would have! Then why should he spare the 
tree? Now I charge upon the sinner that he is 
necessarily in the way of others. I do not charge 
that he means to be in their way, but that he neces- 
sarily is in their way. You go and inquire of the 
tree. You see it has prevented the growth of the 
wheat, or oats, or corn, that has been planted be- 
neath it, that has been cultured and cared for ; but 
when harvest came there was no crop. Now inter- 
rogate the tree, and the tree says, " I did not intend 
to interfere with the growth of the crop !" But do 
you not know, in the nature of things, that tree 
could not have been there without interfering with 
the crop ? Why, it is as clear as the noon-day sun. 

Now how are you going to remedy the influence 
of the tree upon the ground which it occupies? 



376 APPENDIX 

Only by removing the tree. It is utterly impossible 
for the tree to avoid having its influence upon the 
soil which it occupies. Now this illustrates the in- 
fluence of the sinner. He cannot avoid exerting an 
influence, and the sinner should reflect on the num- 
ber of souls he is encumbering by his refusal to 
serve God. It is true he may not design to do this, 
but it is impossible for him to occupy the position 
he does without affecting the interests of some im- 
mortal souls. Every man has an influence ; and I 
will tell you that your influence is in exact propor- 
tion to your moral character .and standing in the 
community. It cannot be otherwise. 

There, for instance, is that husband and father. 
He may be a skeptic in religion, and he exerts an 
influence over every member of his family. Is it at 
all probable that any of his family can be affected 
by gospel truth, and brought to Jesus Christ, and 
be made fruitful Christians, until his encumbering 
influence is removed ? E"ot at all. Why does not 
that wife and those children go to the house of God, 
and become Christians ? Because of the controlling 
influence of that skeptical husband and father; 
and his influence forms a wall around them which 
is positively insurmountable. Is it not probable, 
then, that if it were not for that father's influence, 
they would be converted? Certainly. ISTow how 
are they to be reached ? They are hardening in sin 
and imperiling their eternal interest every day they 
live. How are they to be reached? I ask if it 
would not be better, if that husband cannot be pre- 
vailed upon to become a Christian — if it would not 
be wisdom for the maker of that man to remove 
him out of the way, that the members of his family 
might be reached and saved ? 

" But why did the husbandman want to remove 
that tree ? " you ask. " Had he not plenty of land 
besides ?" Certainly, but what was the use of that 



APPENDIX. 377 

land being occupied with that tree that never brings 
any fruit, and has he not a right to remove it ? And 
so I ask if it is not God's prerogative to take such 
men out of the world, that those whom they encum- 
ber may be brought to repentance and salvation? 
I have labored in some places where there have 
been such hoary-headed sinners, who seemed to be 
in the way of their friends coming to Christ. In 
one case that I think of, I felt moved by the Spirit 
to pray that the person should be taken out of 
the way. He was the father of eight children, a 
hardened wretch, who was in the way of his wife 
and children being saved ; and I felt moved to pray 
that if he could not be saved, he should be taken 
out of the way. And he was taken out of the way, 
I do Dot know how, and that wife and those chil- 
dren were all converted and brought into the Church 
of Christ. 

Oh yes, " Cut it down, why cumbereth it the 
ground?" That is the important question pro- 
pounded here. "Why should it? You may take 
that young man who delights so much in amusing 
himself in the house of prayer. In several places 
where I have labored I have found such young 
persons banded together not to be influenced by the 
preacher, and not to seek salvation. In one case 
I felt impressed to pray for the young man who 
seemed to put himself forward as the leader of the 
rest, and the result was that he was converted. 

And so you may take that young lady. She may 
exert her influence over other young ladies, and 
lead them to refuse to yield their hearts to Christ. 
I have met with such, high-headed, stiff-necked, 
proud-hearted young ladies. I know it is a won- 
derful pity to see a young woman put herself in 
opposition to Christ, to be too proud to bend to the 
Nazarene, and to use her influence to prevent others 
from coming to Christ. Why, some people seem 



378 APPENDIX. 

to think that such a thing ought scarcely to be men- 
tioned. I was asked in one case, by a young man, 
" Who gave you the authority to say that a young 
lady was in the way to hell ? " Why, I tell you, 
God will damn the young lady just as quick as he 
will the beggar on the dunghill. There is no dif- 
ference with Him. And if the young lady takes 
this position, I want to know why she should not 
go down to perdition as well as the male? I tell 
you the ax is laid at the root of every tree.^ It 
matters not whether they are male or female, nigh 
or low, black or white, if they are cumberers of the 
ground, and are standing in the way of anybody 
else, they are in danger of being cut down. 

Now, barren sinner, you see if you. did not cum- 
ber the ground, the barrenness of your soul would 
bring destruction upon you. But, when you com- 
bine with this the encumbering of others around 
you, are you not afraid the ax will be used to cut 
you clown? So it is Christ would teach us these 
important lessons by this parable. 

Without protracting these exercises further, I 
want to inquire of the congregation, who are im- 
penitent, if it is not the prerogative of God to issue 
this order at any moment ? Certainly it is. No 
one can dispute it. Then, we are ready to remark, 
there are none here to whose hearts He has not 
come seeking fruit, one, two, three, or many years. 
How long is it, friend, since you came to years 
of accountability ? And now how old are you ? 
Ascertain that, and you may find out how many 
• years you are in debt to God, for sparing and 
taking care of you. And all this, with nothing 
to pay for one moment of misspent time ! Poor 
miserable bankrupt, as thou art! And I want to 
say, it is nothing but the intercession of Christ that 
has spared you thus far. Oh, how you have insulted 
Him! and yet he pleads: "Spare, oh, spare the 



APPENDIX. 379 

sinner another year ! My servants shall pass round 
and deliver another gospel message. My spirit 
shall again strive with that mind. I will yet wait 
to be gracious, and' if he will repent and bring 
forth the fruits of righteousness, all shall be well. 
If he has misspent much time, and neglected 
many opportunities, and squandered may gifts and 
talents, yet, after all, if he repent after another 
message has been delivered, it shall be well. I will 
accept him, though he has done despite to my 
Spirit, provoked me, done injury to my cause, 
and prevented others from enlisting under my ban- 
ner. If he will now accept my Son, and reverence 
Him, all shall be forgiven. He shall be brought 
into my kingdom, receive my favor, and be an 
heir of everlasting salvation. And it shall be with 
him as if he had commenced to obey me at the 
beginning." 

But if not, there will be the last time when Jesus 
will plead for the guilty soul. He will then say as 
he did of the tree, " Cut it down." It may be very 
soon — we cannot tell; but we are going to com- 
mend you to G-od, and to the word of his grace. 
Hazard not the interests of your soul any longer, 
but seek repentance and the remission of sins. 
Tarry not in all the plains of iniquity. " Seek ye 
the Lord while he may be found, call upon bim 
while he is near." And may God forbid that you 
should ever again reject his Spirit when sent to 
bring you to himself; and may you finally be 
crowned with everlasting life in the kingdom of our 
dear Redeemer. Amen. 



THE GENERAL JUDGMENT. 

(REPORTED, PHOTOGRAPHICALLY, BY RET. E. H. WARING.) 

Text. — " And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God : and the books were 
'opened ; and another book was opened, which is the book of life : and the dead 
were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to 
their works." Rev. xx : 12. 

The last verse of the chapter reads : " And whosoever was not found written in the 
book of life was cast into the lake of fire." 

To say the least, my friends, there are three books 
mentioned, or included in the declaration in this 
text, " books." You perceive that this term is used 
in the plural ; and the third book is the Lamb's 
" book of life," which I may call, to make it more 
plain, God's Family Record, in which are inscribed 
the names of all his saints. 

Before I enter upon the investigation of this sub- 
ject, I want to present one or two facts. The first 
is, that to the church of Jesus Christ there has been 
given no legislative power to enact new laws for the 
government of the subjects of Christ's kingdom. 
These books contain the will of God, as revealed in 
Jesus Christ — the only law that has been, or ever 
will be, given for the government of the king- 
dom of God on earth. It is also true that to this 
church there has been given no dispensing power 
to set aside, or revoke, any law that has been en- 
acted in the council chamber of heaven for the 
government of the church on earth, as you will 
notice from one or two declarations in the context. 
One of them is this — "And if any man shall take 
away from the words of the book of this prophecy, 
God shall take away his part out of the book of life, 



APPENDIX. 381 

and out of the holy city, and from the things which 
are written in this book."* 

Then we are to understand, taking this view of 
'the subject, that our salvation is based upon humble 
obedience to the revealed will of God, as contained 
in the New Testament Scriptures. And I will 
remark further, that while many claim that there is 
no punishment for sin in a future state of being, 
notwithstanding God has threatened to punish sin, 
according to the declarations contained in the Bible, 
I claim that God cannot avoid punishing those who 
fall in their sins beyond the grave. Not to do it 
would be to make him violate his own law ; and 
we claim that while God is a covenant-keeping God, 
he is also a law-abiding God, and will stand by his 
own truth. No matter if infidels are angry, and if 
all the devils in the universe go frowning around 
and raise their objections to the Word of Life, it 
will stand firm as the pillars of heaven. God can 
not violate his own truth. I want to enforce this 
idea upon your minds. Let me illustrate it. Many 
have asked, " How can God be happy in heaven, 
when he knows that multitudes of his creatures are 
suffering under the penalty of his law forever ?" 
Let me remark that if the sinner is damned, he 
damns himself. God's law and God's plan of salva- 
tion have been clearly revealed, and the sinner 
may become acquainted with them now, and need 
not wait until the judgment day to know what God 
requires of him for salvation. For instance, the 
thief knew before he committed the act of theft 
what the penalty was, just as well as he learned it 
afterward. Now the law is known, what is the duty 
of the judge? The man has stolen your horse, he 
has been arrested, brought into court, the evidence 
is had, the jury have taken the case and retired, 

* Rev. xxii : 19. 



382 APPENDIX. 

in a little while they return and announce a verdict 
of "guilty." Now what is the duty of the judge? 
Would the criminal speak to him to enact a new 
code to exonerate him from the penalty of the law ? 
Not a word of it. That judge is there to administer 
the law as it is, and to administer it faithfully. Now 
would it not be unjust for that thief to brand that 
judge with being a hard master for exacting the 
penalty of his crime ? Could the judge do other- 
wise without being himself a violator of the law ? 
Would he not be a perjured man if he did not ad- 
minister the law according to his oath and the nature 
of the case? Is it not his duty to find out the 
penalty attached to the crime, and administer accord- 
ingly? Now, here is God's law. You may all know 
it. In it is revealed, " the wages of sin is death." 
We may all know this, and know it before as well 
as after we commit sin. The thief knew the penalty 
as well before as after he did the act of theft. 

Many are troubled about this thing. One says, 
" I wish I knew how it will be with me in the judg- 
ment day!" "I wish I could assure my heart 
whether I will be happy then, or not !" You need 
not vex yourself about that. If you will go to God's 
book you may dismiss all these questionings. You 
may know your duty here, just as well as you will 
know it beyond the grave. God will make no 
new requirements there, but will judge every man 
according to his works. 

But about these books. The books mentioned 
in the text are the Old and New Testament Scrip- 
tures. I might take up the book of nature, and the 
book of conscience, and other things, in relation to 
this subject; but I will speak only of the Old and 
New Testament Scriptures. The books are opened. 

But you may ask why the Old Testament Scrip- 
tures are present in the day of reckoning ? You 
may say, " Why, I supposed we were from under 



APPENDIX. 383 

the Old Testament, and under the New Testament 
dispensation ?" That may be true now ; but in the 
general judgment God will have as much to do with 
the Old as with the New Testament. It would be 
unjust, for instance, to hold Adam accountable for 
obedience to New Testament requirements. Adam 
received but a very brief law, and will be held 
accountable only to it, and not to a law revealed 
many years after Adam had passed away from earth. 
That age of the world is compared by historians to 
the starlight. But as the world passed on, there 
was raised up one and another through whom God 
communicated his will to men ; and as knowledge 
increased, men's responsibility increased also. Here 
comes Moses, through whom God revealed his will, 
and then one prophet after another, and thus the 
light increased; and so it is written, that "the word 
of the Lord was unto them, precept' upon precept, 
precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line ; 
here a little and there a little."* And this pro- 
phetic dispensation is compared to the moonlight. 
You know how much larger the moon is than the 
star, and how much fuller the light. Thus man's 
responsibility continually increased; and thus we 
may pass through the Old Testament Scriptures, to 
show that they will be introduced in the day of 
general judgment. All that lived and died under 
the Old Testament dispensation will be judged by 
Old Testament law ; and this will be just, for God 
is going " to judge the world in righteousness." 

Now we come to the New Covenant. I know 
there is a controversy going on with reference to 
the exact time when the Old Covenant closed up 
and the new one was introduced. Well, one thing 
is certain, that we were never held by the Eternal 
amenable to both laws at the same time ; that is, 

* Isa. xxviii : 13 



384 APPENDIX. 

that God would not hold the people responsible to 
the Old and New Testaments at the same time. 
Therefore, just when the old covenant closes the 
new one commences; and it is remarked that, "The 
law and the prophets were until John: since that 
time c the kingdom of God is preached, and every 
man presseth into it."* Therefore, since the old dis- 
pensation passed away, we are held answerable to 
New Testament requirements. The reading, study- 
ing, and searching of New Testament requirements, 
as God's will revealed to a ruined world, ought, 
therefore, to be interesting to every man. And 
why? Because we are responsible to God's re- 
vealed will as contained in the New Testament 
Scriptures. Now, mark you, there has been a 
change in the law. Here come up new ordinances 
and new duties, and this dispensation brings up all 
the claims of God upon us. They are all revealed — 
all made known — and here is a rule* by which the 
Christian world will be governed. Here we have 
it — Heaven's great code. You may all have it. 
This is the rule by which the great court of the 
universe will be governed, so far as respects us, in 
the great day of reckoning. 

Now the Eternal has prescribed that this code 
shall be preached to every creature — not to every 
nation, but to every creature. And then, again, 
that they might be made acquainted with the re- 
quirements of God — that they might know what 
they must do to secure salvation — they have only 
to learn the will of God as here revealed. And 
these men of God take this Word and go forth, pub- 
lishing salvation, with all its consequences, to every 
nation and every creature. And Jesus tells us 
plainly that this gospel of the kingdom is to be 
preached in all the world, for a witness unto all 

* Luke xvi: 16. 



APPENDIX. 385 

nations, and then shall the end come.* Do you 
know that when yon are slighting this Word, you 
are slighting one of the witnesses that will appear, 
.for or against you, in the last day? If you will 
have nothing to do with the "Word of Life here, it 
will have much to do with you in that day. Is it 
nothing to you that you pass it by ? How many do 
pass by this Word as though it was nothing to them ! 
And yet it will be here, and it will be yonder. Men 
must have something to do with it ; and if they will 
not here, they will yonder. This book will be there. 
I do not mean to say that this combustible, material 
book, will be there ; but every principle, every truth, 
every promise, every threatening, will be there, and 
will be presented by the judge, and we must answer to 
it. And this Word will be the rule of judgment there. 
Jesus says, " He that rejecteth me, and receiveth 
not my words, hath one that judgeth him : the word 
that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the 
last day."f And if this Word is to judge us, will it 
not be just for it to be there? Men will not be 
able to controvert it then. They may do it now, 
but they will not do it then ; and when the great 
judge himself interprets it, there will be no excuse 
for not having obeyed it. It may be no plainer 
then than now. There will be no excuse then, and 
there is none now, when we consider how clear is 
the light in which it has been revealed — how it is 
adapted to us — how it elevates us — what a source 
of joy it has been to us; and we shall be sur- 
prised that we have ignored the book of God, by 
which we are to stand beyond the grave. And thus 
we see that God has provided for the publication of 
this Word to every nation, in every human ear, that 
there may be no excuse for sin in that day. 

There is another thing connected with this: " the 

* Matt, xxiv : 14, \ John xii : 48. 

17 



386 APPENDIX. 

tilings which were written in the books." Now, 
when you look at those things, do you think there 
can be any repeal of them, or any power granted by 
which they can be set aside ? No, not a word of 
it; they are permanently fixed as the pillars of 
heaven. Now we are to be judged " according to 
the things which are written in the books, accord- 
ing to their works." Now let us see whether we 
have observed the things which are written in these 
books, and we may know in ten minutes whether 
we shall be condemned or acquitted there. 

Xow you know it is made our duty to repent It 
is a very simple thing, and I want to bring it down 
to the capacity of every one of you. The doctrine 
of repentance is a doctrine of this book. It is written 
here, and the text says emphatically that the dead 
will be judged " out of those things ivhich were written 
in the books." Now, have you repented of your 
sins ? How many there are that have never been 
exercised with a godly sorrow that worketh repent- 
ance unto life ! Now compare your conduct with 
the things written in these books ; and if you have 
never repented, God could not refuse to damn you 
without violating his own law. Is not that clear ? 
How can the judge pardon that criminal who has 
been convicted at his bar ? He has not the pardon- 
ing power, for that the man must go to the Gov- 
ernor. Then you cannot be excused unless you 
repent of your sins. And yet you refuse to repent, 
and stand and wonder whether you will be saved or 
lost. Why God cannot have you without repent- 
ance, without violating his own laws. Now here 
the doctrine of repentance is revealed. Just what 
God asks you to do is made plain ; and he gives the 
means to aid, assist, and lead the souls of men 
aright in the journey of life, if you will only yield 
obedience to his requirements. 

Again, there is the duty of faith. "We read in the 



APPENDIX. 387 

Scriptures that " with the heart, man believeth unto 
righteousness; and with the mouth, confession is 
made*unto salvation."* Have you ever with the 
heart believed, and with the mouth made confession 
unto salvation ? Have you ever ? If not, believe 
me, dying sinner, you stand condemned by the law 
of heaven, by your own conscience, and by the long 
catalogue of crime which you have committed 
against the law of Christ. 

He also requires every individual that thus re- 
pents and believes to be baptized. This is the very 
next thing that is written. I am not going to argue 
any mode of baptism this afternoon, but simply to 
enjoin it upon you as one of those things that you 
are to attend to. Have you done this ? If you have 
never been baptized, you have never rendered obedi- 
ence to the requirements of Christ. 

And, brethren, after you have done these things, 
you are required to come out from the world and. 
be separate. Indeed, I might spend much time in 
bringing out these things that are written in these 
books, but we must proceed. 

I would look around again. You gather up a 
band of Christians. You see them happy. You 
see them laboring for you. "What induces this 
brother (referring to the Sabbath-school superin- 
tendent) to come here and labor in the Sabbath 
school, from Sabbath to Sabbath ? Do you line his 
pockets with greenbacks ? Is that the motive that 
prompts him ? ~No : but it is to advance the glory 
of God, and secure the salvation of souls. And so 
it is, doubtless, with the teachers, every one of them. 
ISTow, why do Christians toil ? "What is it all for ? 
Why, they are going to be rewarded according to 
their works ; and they labor to fit you for the ser- 
vice of the living Christ. If you ask them their 

* Rom. x : 10. 



388 APPENDIX. 

motive, they will perhaps tell you that Christ has 
moved them by his Spirit; and that, exercising a 
godly sorrow which needeth not to be repeated of, 
they believe in Christ, and they have received that 
influence which creates a man anew in Christ Jesus. 
They have turned unto God, who has had meroy 
on them, and have partaken of Christ by faith. 
Then you ask them, " Have you gone on doing what 
Christ has told you ?" " Oh, yes." They tell you 
that they know they are of the truth, and can assure 
their hearts before him, and that truth works in 
them ; and they labor to bring their fellow-men to 
Christ, feeling that their works shall be rewarded 
at the last day. And, my brethren, I know you 
call all to go along with this class of individuals, and 
be presented with them to the Father, and share 
in their reward ; for God will reward every man 
that feareth him. "God is no respecter of per- 
sons ; but in every nation, he that feareth him and 
worketh righteousness, is accepted of him."* Then 
men from every clime will be rewarded, and their 
reward will be glorious. You may know what that 
reward will be now, and need not wait to know it. 
I think God has told us what " the penny " will be. 
I think that of all people on the earth, Christians 
should be the most happy. You hear them talk 
about poverty sometimes. Yes, they are down in 
the depths of poverty ; but yet they are the richest 
people upon whom the sun has ever shone. Christ 
was poor; but is it not written that "though he was 
rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye 
through his poverty might be rich ?" f And who, 
in view of what he has promised, would talk about 
poverty ? 

'Now the Christian labors in every possible way 
to bring men to God, to glorify his Father which is 

* Acts x : 34-35. f 2 Cor. ix : 9. 



APPENDIX. 389 

in heaven, and thus to do his appointed work, 
knowing that he will be rewarded in that day. 

And now, with Teference to the ungodly. You 
see men will be judged according to their works. 
You may flatter your wicked hearts that you will be 
saved, although you have never complied with the 
first principle of Christian obedience. ISTow you can 
tell for yourselves what your works have been. Just 
stop and think for a single moment, and then tell 
me, if you please, if your are willing for God to 
reward you according to your works — according to 
your past history and present standing in the sight 
of the Eternal? Are you willing? God has 
promised to do it, and you cannot say it is unjust 
for him to do it. And 1 want to know, then, if this 
afternoon should bring you to the final reckoning, 
and you should be rewarded according to your 
works, whether blame could attach to the judge ? 
Certainly not. Could blame attach to the judge for 
having faithfully performed his duty in inflicting 
the penalty which the law has affixed to the crime, 
when the man has been duly tried and convicted, 
upon sufficient evidence, of the crime of which he 
was charged ? Certainly not. 

$"ow, here come the books, and among them is 
the book of conscience, which you have written with 
your own hands. Here is the law which God gave 
you through his Son, who died for you on the 
reeking cross. Here are the requirements of God, 
and every one of them is reasonable, and such as 
you must approve. Here is the written Word, and 
there is the book you have written. I want to 
know how God can save such a man. Here is the 
gospel which was preached unto you, and there are 
the people of God, entering in through the gates 
into the city, who were saved by that gospel ! How 
can you be saved? You neglected the gospel. You 
rejected Christ, and counted the blood of the cove- 



390 APPENDIX. 

nant, wherewith God sought to sanctify you, an 
unholy thing. How can you be saved ? Yes, the 
books will be opened, and the time is coming when 
you shall see the justice of God in the damnation of 
the sinner. You will have to see it — you cannot 
escape. Your sins will sink you beneath the wrath 
of God for ever and ever, while the lightnings of 
Sinai will flash throughout your darkened soul 
through all eternity. And you have done it your- 
self! While God invited you, while the church 
wooed you, while the ministers of Christ besought 
you, you have gone on ignoring the blood of the 
covenant, and neglecting all the means which God 
has provided for your salvation ; and thus, by your 
own conduct you have destroyed your own salva- 
tion, and made your bed in hell. Now, can any 
blame attach to the Eternal ? No, never, never. 
But I must hasten. I might go on and enumerate 
crime after crime that you have committed ; but I 
must not dwell upon it now. 

Now, after this gospel is preached to all nations 
for a witness, then will the end come, and this 
Word will appear against you ; and, to come to the 
third clause in the text, there must be a general 
resurection: and all this will occur immediately 
after the close of the gospel dispensation. When 
the gospel will cease to be preached, and the lips of 
the ministers will be sealed, then God will summon 
the world to judgment. Then shall the tenants of 
the tomb "come forth; they that have done good 
unto the resurrection of life; and they that have 
done evil unto the resurrection of damnation." * 

And this shows, as I have already said, that we 
are to be judged according to our characters. As 
we have formed them here we shall appear in that 
day. And now, at the blowing of the trumpet by 

* John v : 29. 



APPENDIX. 391 

the angel Gabriel, the dead will come forth, and 
every man will appear in his own order. And then 
this third book — the Book of Life — will be pro- 
'dnced. Oh, with what interest the Church of God 
will look upon that book ! It is God's family re- 
cord. It contains the names of all God's people — 
every one of them. Here we may be imposed upon. 
"We may enroll upon our church records unworthy 
men. There may be a baptized sinner — a Simon 
the sorcerer, numbered with the people of God — but 
there will be no mistake there. That record is kept 
above — kept in heaven — and it will be absolutely 
correct ; and this record will be produced. "With 
what interest, I say, will we look upon that record, 
when we come to appear in that day. I understand 
that the names of every Christian will be in that 
book, and all whose names are not in that book will 
be cast into the lake of fire. How anxiously we 
shall look to find out whether all the family are 
there ! " "Where is John ? Where is Mary ? Where 
is father — mother — husband — wife ? They have 
fallen here and there, and some, perhaps, in distant 
lands. Oh, how interested we shall be to know 
whether all their names are there ! 

And now the judge proceeds to inquire, "Did 
you do my will ? Did you keep these requirements 
that are written in these books?" Now let your 
works come up, not by way of merit, but as acts of 
obedience — works of righteousness ; let them come 
up, and let us compare the one record with the 
other. Happy is that man who can then say, " I 
have kept the prophecy of this book." Is there 
not a blessing pronounced upon obedience to God's 
law? Oh yes. "Blessed are they that do his com- 
mandments, that they may have right to the tree of 
life, and may enter in through the gates into the 
city."* ISTow, who would not be of the truth! 

* Rev. xxii: 14. 



392 APPENDIX. 

Who would not keep the commandments of God! 
Who would not so live as to assure their hearts 
before him in that day ! 

That book — that family record — is open; here 
are the family coming up — all gathered together, 
and there is to be a final separation. To illustrate 
it, suppose we were to divide this congregation, 
placing on one side all who keep the command- 
ments of Christ, and on the other side all who dis- 
obey him. Would not families be divided ? Here 
is the husband — a good husband and kind father, 
but without piety in his soul — he is on the left of 
the line. There is the wife, who enjoys Christ in 
her heart — she is on the other side. Oh, what a 
division this would make in your families even here! 
And there will be families divided forever, accord- 
ing to the revelation which God has made in the 
Bible. There are persons who have repented, be- 
lieved in Christ and obeyed him, who shall be on 
the right hand of the judge ; and others who have 
ignored the Bible, and have fallen in death with 
their sins upon them, who shall come forth to the 
resurrection of damnation. Oh, what a solemn day 
that will be when this book will be opened ! Where 
do you stand, sinner ? The record declares em- 
phatically that Christ " shall separate them one 
from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from 
the goats. And he shall set the sheep on his right 
hand, but the goats on the left."* The family of 
man will be divided, the good from the bad, the 
saint from the sinner ; and while the one class is 
received into the heavenly family, the other is cast 
off to wail in perdition for ever. They are sever- 
ally rewarded according to their works. ISTow, you 
see clearly where you stand. That is the day of 
reward. You do not hear any more the inviting 

* Matt, zxiv: 32-3. 



APPENDIX. 393 

voice of the gospel. You are not asked to come to 
the mercy-seat. The clay of probation has gone, 
and the time of reward has come. " Oh, reach out 
your hand, poor sinner, and take the cup of wrath 
and drink it to its dregs ; and when you have heard 
the sentence of the judge, then turn away, while the 
heavens are rolled away as a parchment scroll, and 
the elements melt with fervent heat, and bear your 
doom forever, down amid wailing and woe that shall 
never end! You are a lost spirit, and must be shut 
out forever. Your works have been evil continually 
continually, and you must be rewarded according 
to your works !" 

And now, in leaving the subject with you, I 
want to say to you that the books have not yet been 
opened. You are still surrounded with mercy. 
Your da}^ of probation has not passed. "Will you 
still ignore salvation ? Will you still turn your back 
upon the bleeding Lamb, and pass by, and say, " It 
is nothing to me?" Will you not stand where you 
now are, and say, " I will pray to God that he will 
lead me to repentance and salvation, that in that 
day I may be found on the right hand with the 
righteous, and with them wear the robe and bear 
the palm, and go up through the emerald gates into 
the city ?" 

Let me say that I believe our infant children will 
all be saved in the world to come — all whose names 
are written in that book — all, all will be saved, 
and garnered in everlasting glory. W x e sincerely 
trust that you will all be found on the right hand 
in that day. We want you to be saved. Every 
day you live in sin you are getting farther from God. 
Repent of your sins, and yield to be saved by grace. 
May God bless you. Amen. 
17* 



AN EXAMINATION' 

OF THE COMPARATIVE STATISTICAL RESULTS OF THE 
LABORS OF ELDER JACOB KNAPP, IN THE STATE OF 
MASSACHUSETTS. BY A. WILBUR. 

The following examination and calculations on the 
results of the labors of Elder Jacob Knapp, in the 
State of Massachusetts, were made in the autumn 
of 1846 ; at which time there seemed to prevail a 
general impression, at least in the Baptist denomina- 
tion, that the effects of his labors with the churches 
were anything but salutary. The pulpit and the 
press proclaimed the "disastrous results," — such as 
" spurious converts," " excommunications," " un- 
settling ministers," " dividing churches," and the 
like. The spirit so prevailed with the clergy, that 
it was rare to hear an occasional sermon or an 
address, or even a Sabbath-school essay, but it 
would contain some direct or indirect missile at the 
"revival," or its "measures." We conscientiously 
believe ministers and -writers were not aware to 
what extent their minds were led by the spirit of the 
times. 

While these things were thus passing, it occurred 
to us, " Is it so ?" Are these statements and repre- 
sentations facts, or are they specters of the ima- 
gination ? Instead, therefore, of following the 
multitude, and crying, "Away with such a fellow 
from the earth !" we quietly retired to our domicile 
and examined our documents carefully, " whether 
these things were so." And we are compelled to 



APPENDIX. 395 

say, we were surprised at the results. We found 
our own mind had been borne away by the tide of 
public influence to an extent we could hardly have 
.believed. 

Our examinations then extended to four years 
inclusive, commencing with the associational year 
of the evangelist's labors in each church; including 
that, and the three successive years. The following 
was the result : 

Mr. Knapp commenced his labors in Massachu- 
setts with the Baptist church in New Bedford, in 
the Taunton Asssociation, in the summer of 1841. 
That church, during the four consecutive years, 
baptized 262, and excommunicated in the same 
time 28, or about 10J per cent, on her baptisms. 
All the other churches in that association, taken 
together, in the same four years, baptized 488, and 
excommunicated 105, or nearly 22 per cent, on their 
baptisms. 

At the end of the four years the church in New 
Bedford had gained in numerical strength 205, or 
80J per cent, on her former number. All the other 
churches in the association had gained in the same 
time 284, or 18J per cent, on their former number. 

The church in New Bedford separately, and the 
other churches collectively, have excluded annually 
about an equal proportion compared with their 
numbers, viz., averaging about If per cent, on their 
whole number. 

His next labors in the State were in the Boston 
Association. Here they were mostly confined to 
Jive churches in the city of Boston. Two of the 
city churches did not invite him into their pulpits. 
One of these, with its pastor, was decidedly un- 
friendly to the whole movement, from beginning to 
end. 

Those five churches where Mr. Knapp labored, 
baptized, during the four years, 1,054 persons, 



396 APPENDIX. 

and excommunicated 158, or 15 per cent, on their 
baptisms. 

All the other churches in the Boston Association, 
taken together, baptized in the same time 1,775, 
and excluded 336, or nearly 19 per cent, on their 
baptisms. 

The two churches in the city where Mr. Kuapp 
did not labor, baptized 122, and excluded 36, or 29 
per cont. on their baptisms. 

The church that was unfavorable, and took no 
interest in the movement, baptized 22, and excluded 
12, or 54J per cent, on her baptisms. All these 
churches, thus separately classed, have excommuni- 
cated, on an average, annually, within a fraction x)f 
1J per cent, on their whole numbers. 

The live churches where the evangelist labored, 
have gained in numerical strength in the four years, 
904 members, or ol per cent. All the others in the 
association, together, have gained 670, or a little 
over 13J per cent, 

The two churches in the city above named, taken 
separate, in the same time have lost in number 72, 
or 8f per cent, on their former numbers. 

The next labors of this evangelist in the State 
were in the Salem Association. Here also they 
were mostly had with five churches, viz., three in 
Lowell, the Second Church in Salem, and the 
church in Marblehead ; although his labors in 
Marblehead were small compared with those of the 
other four churches. These five churches, during 
four years, commencing with the year of his labors, 
baptized 817, excluded 143, or a little over 17 per 
cent, on their baptisms. 

All the other churches in that association, in the 
same time baptized 669, and excommunicated 207, 
or 31 per cent, on their baptisms. These five 
churches also have excluded annually, on an aver- 



APPENDIX. 397 

age, about 1J per cent, on their whole numbers. 
The other churches a mere fraction over. 

The five churches have gained in the four years, 
508 members, or 26 per cent. The other churches 
gained in the same time 198, or a fraction less than 
6 per cent. 

These examinations, as before said, were made 
after the close of the four years ; and they show to 
every candid mind, that the constantly reiterated 
complaints of " spurious converts," " numerous ex- 
clusions," etc., having reference to the evangelist's 
labors, were without a shadow of foundation. But, 
on the contrary, the churches where he did not 
labor excluded many more,- in comparison with 
their receptions, than those with whom he did, and 
each class about an equal proportion to their whole 
numbers. 

We stated these facts, at the time, to several 
brethren, who said the public ought to have them ; 
and at one time we fully concluded to publish 
them, but were deterred for reasons that will be 
given hereafter. 

A few months since, a friend, who learned we 
had some facts relating to Mr. Knapp's labors, 
asked the loan of them. Our attention being thus 
again called to the subject, we concluded to extend 
the comparison throughout the State; and although 
the examination absorbed more time than we knew 
how to spare, yet we pursued it, and arrived at the 
following results : 

It will be remembered, Mr. Knapp labored with 
eleven churches in this State : one in the Taunton 
Association, five in the Boston, and five in the Salem 
Associations. The results of these labors were 
reported in three associational years, viz., 1841, 
1842, and 1843. In making up the aggregate of 
baptisms, etc., of the other churches in the State, 



398 APPENDIX. 

the intermediate year of 1842 is taken as the year 
of commencement. 

The eleven churches, then, where he labored, 
commencing in these churches with the year of his 
labors — as will be seen above — baptized in four 
years 2,133, and excluded 329, or a little over 15 
per cent, on their baptisms. All the other churches 
in the State, taken together, baptized in the same 
time 6,746, and excommunicated 1,578, or 23J per 
cent, on their baptisms. 

Having recently shown the above to a brother, he 
suggested the idea of extending the comparison still 
further. Wishing to make our examinations as 
satisfactory and conclusive as possible, we concluded 
to continue them for four years more, so as to in- 
clude eight years; supposing any further calcula- 
tions would be needless, as all influences for good 
or for evil would not extend beyond this. 

In eight years there had been added to the 
associations in the State, 42 churches, containing 
3,394 members. These are mostly new churches; 
some few are churches of some years' existence, but 
have recently united with the associations. These 
42 churches are not included in the following 
calculations, — only the churches which existed 
at the commencement of 1842. The propriety 
of this will be seen when it is remembered that 
these new churches are made up from all the 
churches in the State, assisted in some instances 
by members ^from other States; and if their statis- 
tics were included, their whole influence would be 
on the side of the churches in the State in 1842. 
Leaving out the new churches, and deducting the 
eleven in which the evangelist labored, there re- 
mained in the State, at the commencement of 1842, 
193 churches. Between these and the eleven the 
comparison is made. 



APPENDIX. 399 

We find, then, in eight years, inclusive, the eleven 
churches baptized 2,625, and excommunicated 613, 
or 23 per cent, on their baptisms. The 193 other 
-churches in the State, in the same time baptized 
8,673, and excommunicated 2,456, or 28J per cent, 
on their baptisms. The original number in the 
eleven churches was 3,984. They had gained in the 
eight years 1,266, or nearly 31 per cent. 

The original number in the 193 churches was 
21,432. They had gained in eight years 254, or a 
little more than 1 per cent. 

This discrepancy of gain being so great, it occurred 
to us, perhaps the 193 churches had been more 
largely drawn upon to form new churches. So 
again we betook ourselves to the task of examining 
the dismissions, and found the following result : 

The eleven churches, in the eight years, have 
dismissed to other churches, and to form new ones 
1,543 members, or nearly 33J per cent, on their 
average numbers. 

The other churches in the same time have dis- 
missed 6,403, or nearly 30 per cent, on their average 
numbers. 

So we found the eleven churches had done their 
full share, according to their numbers, in contribut- 
ing in membership to build new churches. 

We have given the facts; let them speak for 
themselves. They have been gathered from official 
documents, examined and compared with much care 
and labor, and, we think, may be relied on. 

Any way one may look at the eleven churches, 
compared with the others, either of their associations 
or of the whole State, they show themselves on the 
advantage ground. 

JSTow, suppose the result to have proved just the 
reverse — as has been represented, and is to this day 
supposed to be the fact by the community — we say, 
suppose these eleven churches had appeared com- 



400 APPENDIX. 

paratively to as great disadvantage as they do to 
advantage, what might, with propriety, — nay, what 
would be said ? We offer no comments. 

But it will be asked by some: Why bring these 
things out at this late period? — (and we shall look 
for censure from a certain class) — why were they 
not given to the public while the subject was before 
the people's mind? To this we answer, first, as 
before said, when the examination of the first four 
years was finished, we showed the results to several 
brethren, who strongly advised us to publish them. 
We concluded to do so, but took occasion to show 
them to two brethren who were unfriendly to the 
revival movement, and spared not to speak against 
it. We chose to see what effect it would have. 

After carefully reading our document through, 
they handed it back, saying, " Well ! what of all 
that — it proves nothing. If they [the converts] are 
not excluded, there are hundreds who ought to be." 

It appeared to have no effect to suggest to their 
minds the possibility that they might be in an error. 
We were convinced that the public mind generally, 
at least in our denomination, was so fixed, that 
evidence on this subject, however conclusive, had 
lost its power. 

Second, our attention has recently been called to 
the subject, as we said. It was again suggested that 
" these facts ought to be given to the public." We 
concluded also that the public mind, generally, (not in 
all cases) is now so unbiassed that men can look 
at facts impartially, and give them their due weight. 

Another incentive to publish was, that probably 
these lines would fall into the hands of many des- 
ponding disciples, who for some years past have 
been exercised somewhat, as probably most of 
Christ's numerous disciples were, when the news 
spread over Palestine that " Jesus of Nazareth was 
crucified." Their meditations have been, "What 



APPENDIX. 401 

did all this mean ? " " We verily thought we were 
exercised by true religion." " If this is spurious, is 
,not all religion spurious?" "If these converts are 
mostly spurious converts, am not I such ? and are 
not all such?" — or "where is the evidence of the 
true ? " and the like. We met with many such, and 
endeavored to comfort them by assuring them that 
the generally received reports concerning those 
revivals were not true, and that, so far as our know- 
ledge extended, the converts of those revivals were, 
considering their numbers, as true and lasting as 
any converts of any revival we ever witnessed. We 
have sometimes thought, perhaps, for the sake of 
such disciples, it was a mistake not to have pub- 
lished before. 

We will now propose a question to the reader of 
this pamphlet in Massachusetts. 

Admitting that the revivals in 1841 and 1842 
were as really the genuine operations of the Holy 
Spirit as have been any revivals since the Apostles' 
days, and let the same course be pursued as was 
pursued by the ministry, the press and the laity, 
towards the means, the measures and the converts, 
might we not reasonably suppose it would legiti- 
mately produce precisely the state of things in the 
churches as was found in 1844, 1845 and 1846 ? 

There is something unaccountable in men, good 
men, pious men, with reference to evidence of the 
operations of the Holy Spirit. No matter how 
judicious, candid or pious, (or all of these combined) 
a man may be, and no matter how the Spirit may 
be operating, if from any cause his mind happens to 
take a turn against those operations, there seems 
to come over him a moral mist or darkness that 
wholly disables him to receive evidence in favor of 
the Spirit's power. Evidence, that would be abun- 
dant and conclusive in any other case, is no evidence 
in chis; or it is sometimes perverted and becomes 



402 APPENDIX. 

evidence against instead of in favor. We think we 
have observed this in many instances in the course 
of our pilgrimage, and in several have detected it 
in ourself. Never have we seen this indefinable, — 
what shall we call it? — delusive mysticism! no, 
that does not convey our idea; and we know no 
words in our circumscribed vocabulary that will. 
It is an indescribable something that comes over 
the mind and perverts the judgment on this particu- 
lar subject, and effects no other. We say, we never 
saw it prevail in our denomination as it did in 1844, 
1845 and 1846, in regard to the revivals of 1842. 
Inferences were drawn from false premises, and 
given forth to the public as true. Statements were 
made and sent out, directly contrary to facts. Re- 
ports, almost innumerable, were circulated, which 
had no shadow of foundation; and some of the 
above were from good, well-meaning men, who 
intended no misrepresentation, but verily thought 
they spake and wrote truth. Our charity for the 
Jewish Council which sat in Jerusalem in the year 
29, with Caiaphas in the chair, was enlarged fifty 
per cent. ; and never before did we so fully under- 
stand the spirit of that prayer, " Father, forgive 
them, they know not what they do." It would be 
endless and useless to revert to these statements 
and rumors, and then show their unreliableness ; 
but for the sake of showing how easily a good man 
may slide into an error, and unintentionally misstate 
things, perhaps we may be permitted to name one 
fact. 

In 1844, (it might have been in 1845) a pastor in 
this city wrote to a distant body, that the people of 
his charge a had so lost their confidence in him 
[Mr. Knapp], that not twenty of his church would 
hear him preach unless he was a reformed man." 
We heard that such had been written. It so hap- 
pened, a short time after this, Mr. Knapp was to 



APPENDIX. 403 

preach on a Sabbath evening in the Tremont Tem- 
ple. We attended the lecture, and sat on the side 
of the hall, where we could see to recognize about 
half of the congregation ; and seeing quite a number 
present from that church, we had the curiosity to 
count them, and we saw fifty-two from that church 
whom we knew. As the congregation was passing 
out, a prominent member of that church came by, 
whom we asked if there were not more than twenty 
members of his church present. "Yes," said he, 
" more than a hundred." And we verily believe he 
spoke the truth. 

We have named this circumstance only to show 
facts. We well know that pastor, and will say no 
one holds a higher place in our Christian affection 
than he. Further, we are ready to bear testimony 
that he will not intentionally misrepresent; but 
such was the general impression, and he imbibed it 
so strongly, that he felt assured he stated the truth. 

May we venture an opinion? — and whether cor- 
rect or not, we are confident it would be supported 
by a large proportion of that church. Our opinion 
is, that there has not been a time since he labored 
in Boston, that any other man in the United States 
could call together a greater number of that church, 
to hear a sermon, than Mr. Knapp. 



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